Gun-rights activists are moving forward with a new law to allow concealed carry inside campus buildings.
According to Campus Reform, the Texas state House passed the legislation, SB11, in a preliminary vote on Wednesday by an overwhelming margin of 101 to 47.
The new law, however, is drawing fire from university officials and gun-control advocates.
Those concerned include the University of Texas System Chancellor Admiral William McRaven, who wrote in a letter early this week that the presence of handguns on campus may discourage prospective faculty members from moving from other states without campus carry. He also warned that the law might cause tuition prices to increase.
“The presence of handguns on Texas campuses, where we would be one of fewer than 10 states to allow this conduct, may well cause faculty to be discouraged from relocating from other states. The intuitive answer is that the presence of concealed weapons will make us less competitive,” wrote McRaven, according to the Houston Chronicle.
The legislation will cost $47 million over the next six years in order to provide weapon storage facilities and more campus security.
Critics are demanding everything from banning handguns in campus buildings that house mental health and crisis counseling centers to opt-out clauses.
The worries of gun-control advocates and campus officials haven’t been completely ignored; the Texas House also passed an amendment allowing each campus to determine where the concealed handguns would be allowed.
