The Missouri Senate voted 23-8 to override Gov. Jay Nixon's veto of a bill that would lower the concealed carry permit age to 19, arm specially trained teachers and school administrators, and loosen open carry restrictions in some jurisdictions.
It now heads to the House for another override vote.
The Senate vote came after a lengthy discussion from Democratic Sens. Scott Sifton of Affton and Jolie Justus of Kansas City. At times, they examined the bill subsection by subsection, and at one point veered into a discussion over the continued unrest in Ferguson. After about an hour of conversation, both voted against the override.
"The reality is that we're making our cities less safe, and I cannot stand for it," Justus said of the provision that would restrict jurisdictions like Kansas City and St. Louis from barring concealed carry permit holders from carrying openly.
Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, voted in favor of the override.
Sifton expressed concern over the lower age of eligibility for concealed carry permits, pointing out that the lower age could put guns into the hands of many more college students.
Nixon vetoed the bill, calling arming teachers "simply the wrong approach" to keeping students safe.
Gun bill is SB656.
Online:
Senate: http://www.senate.mo.gov