Today, at 5:00 pm in the 4th Floor West Conference Room, the House Militia Subcommittee #1 will hold hearings on the following bills of interest to Virginia gun owners:

The family of slain U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry charged Wednesday that the top federal prosecutor in Phoenix lied to them about the guns found at the crime scene in an attempt to hide the weapons’ connection to the ATF’s failed Fast and Furious gun-tracking operation.

Simply carrying a weapon out in the open wouldn’t be enough for a local municipality to charge a person with disorderly conduct, according to a bill that passed out of a House Committee Monday afternoon. Rep. Paul Ray, R-Clearfield, sponsored HB49 and said it was a way to ensure a uniform approach to protect gun rights and avoid confusion among law enforcement and local governments that are unclear as to what could be charged as disorderly conduct.

A little-known provision in Kansas law that allows the blind and other people with serious physical infirmities to carry concealed weapons in public places likely will not get reviewed by state lawmakers this session.

Top Department of Justice officials had extensive knowledge of and involvement in Operation Fast and Furious, claims a new report released Thursday, hours before Attorney General Eric Holder’s scheduled testimony to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

The Virginia House of Delegates on Wednesday passed a repeal of the state’s 18-year-old one-handgun-a-month law before advancing to its final reading a bill that would stop localities from preventing employees from storing lawfully possessed guns and ammunition in locked cars.

Concealed weapons permit applications are on temporary hold in Sacramento County because of a huge backlog. The announcement on the Sacramento County Sheriff’s website on Wednesday said the calendar for applications is booked through the end of 2012 and applications for 2013 are not yet  being accepted.

Today, House Bill 1132 passed in the state House of Representatives by a 49 to 15 vote. This NRA-backed legislation, which would prohibit employers from preventing employees from lawfully storing firearms in their locked personal vehicles, now heads to the Senate for its consideration.

Today, both the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates remained busy dealing with a large volume of firearms-related legislation. Please continue to contact your state legislators and urge them to support your Second Amendment rights. There are many important bills that still need their support!

House Joint Resolution 2001 is expected to be voted on tomorrow in the Iowa House of Representatives. HJR 2001, which is the House companion of Senate Joint Resolution 2001, would rescind the Iowa Natural Resources Commission’s unjustified and dangerous regulation banning the use of traditional (lead) ammunition for dove hunting. This legislation would go a long way in protecting the use of traditional ammunition in the Hawkeye State.