Ohio Governor Mike DeWine Signs Bill Allowing School Teachers, Staff to Carry Guns

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine has allowed school districts to start arming employees as soon as this fall through a bill he signed into law on Monday.

According to Associated Press, the law requires up to 24 hours of training before an employee can go armed and up to eight hours of annual training.

The Ohio School Safety Center must approve the training programs. DeWine noted that he was ordering the center to require a maximum of 24 hours and the eight hours.

The Republican governor added that schools could provide additional training if they wish.

DeWine also outlined several other school safety measures he and the lawmakers have promoted, including $100 million for security upgrades at schools and $5 million for upgrades in colleges.

Ohio is also adding 28 employees to the school safety center to work with districts on safety issues and provide training under the new law.

According to DeWine, the state has also given $1.2 billion in wellness funding for schools to address mental health and other issues.

Ohio Arming School Teachers and Staff

In a news briefing on Monday, DeWine said the 700 hours of training are intended to broadly train law enforcement, but the vast majority of the training is not "really relevant to school safety, directly."

Thus, the bill reduced the hours of training required for armed school personnel from 700 to 24, CNN reported.

The Republican governor cited some examples of unnecessary training, including patrolling in a police cruiser, stopping a vehicle, investigating a traffic accident, and operating a radar.

House Bill 99 was first introduced in February last year. However, it was quickly pushed through the GOP-controlled Ohio legislature at DeWine's behest after the Texas school shooting.

DeWine said the new law is giving schools a choice to make the best decision they make with the best information they have based on their particular circumstances.

He added that his preference remains that school districts hire armed school resource officers, saying the law is another tool for districts that want to protect children.

Ohio Bill on Guns

According to CBS News, the mayors of Ohio's biggest cities, including Cincinnati, Columbus, and Cleveland, have planned an afternoon press conference to highlight gun violence in their communities and their differences with the governor over gun issues.

Nan Whaley, DeWine's Democratic opponent for governor, denounced DeWine's decision to sign the bill and has also planned to hold a news conference.

Democrats noted that the law "sends the wrong message" after the massacre of 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas. On the other hand, Republicans argued that the measure could prevent such shootings.

Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) of Ohio also opposed the legislation. Mike Weinman, the director of government affairs for the FOP, said that teachers would not have sufficient training to use firearms.

It is also opposed by major law enforcement groups, gun control advocates, and the state's teacher unions. Meanwhile, it is supported by a number of police departments and school districts.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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