By Jim Siegel
Gannett Columbus Bureau

COLUMBUS - Reversing years of opposition, Gov. Bob Taft has agreed to support a bill that permits Ohioans to carry concealed handguns.

The governor's backing came after two major law enforcement groups, for the first time, dropped their opposition. The measure passed unanimously in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday.

The full Senate was prepared to vote today, but the National Rifle Association, which has backed legislation to permit concealed weapons, informed GOP leaders it was pulling its support from the bill until it could study it..

Senate President Doug White, R-Manchester, said he has given the NRA 24 hours to examine the measure.

"I support the bill very strongly that we have today," he said.

The proposal requires county sheriffs to issue concealed handgun permits to anyone age 21 or over who passes a criminal background check and completes a 12-hour training course.

Without an NRA endorsement, White questions whether his Republican members would vote for the bill. The NRA also has a lot of influence in the House, which must agree with any bill adopted by the Senate.

"Certainly if the NRA doesn't support the bill, I wouldn't be in favor of it," said Rep. Jim Aslanides, R-Coshocton, sponsor of the bill.

Since taking office in 1998, Taft, a Republican, has opposed concealed weapons bills introduced in two sessions of the Legislature. He said he could not support any bill that was opposed by law enforcement groups.

The Fraternal Order of Police, the state's largest police union, and the Buckeye State Sheriffs Association, whose members would issue the permits, previously dropped their opposition.

However, the Ohio State Highway Patrol and the Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police have remained opposed.

The patrol now is neutral because the bill was changed Tuesday to better protect officers confronting motorists they have pulled over, said Capt. John Born, a patrol spokesman.

In vehicles, guns would have to be in plain sight in a holster or locked in the glove compartment or a container. If children were present, the gun would have to be locked away. The original version had no restrictions.

Motorists also would have to tell officers immediately if they were carrying weapons, which wasn't required in previous proposals.

Taft said he would support it despite the continued opposition of the police chiefs. He said it reflects his positions on safety, training and the support or neutrality of law enforcement on the bill.

"Our understanding is the bill is satisfactory to our position on all those points," Taft said. "If a bill like that came to my desk, I would sign it."

Aslanides said he could support the bill if people who believed there was an immediate threat to their lives were allowed to carry weapons without permits.

"I can't sponsor a bill that puts citizens of Ohio at risk," he said.

Doug Joseph, state director for the Gun Owners of America, called the measure a gun owner registration bill that won't allow people to defend themselves.

"Gun owners really are getting the shaft," he said.

Meanwhile, Toby Hoover, director of the Ohio Coalition Against Gun Violence, said the new bill attempted to address some concerns but is still a problem. "The bill is still about politics," she said. "Carrying guns will, plain and simple, not make Ohioans safer," she said.

The debate continues as the Ohio Supreme Court considers a Hamilton County case challenging the constitutionality of the state's ban on concealed weapons. Two lower courts have ruled the law banning the carrying of weapons without "legitimate reasons" is unconstitutional.

Gun bill at a glance

• Sheriffs would be responsible for issuing concealed handgun permits. Cost may not exceed $45.

• Applicant must be at least 21 and pass a criminal background check, which includes fingerprinting.

• Applicant must complete a 12-hour gun competency course. At least two hours must be live firing.

• Guns cannot be carried into police stations, jails, MR/DD centers, courthouses, school safety zones, places serving alcohol, churches, child care centers, universities, aircraft or public buildings.

• Private property owners can restrict gun possession.

• Guns in cars must be locked away if the car contains a child under age 18. Otherwise, the gun must either be locked away or in a holster in plain sight.

• If stopped while in a vehicle, the driver must inform the officer immediately that there is a loaded gun in the car.