Nebraska to begin Debate on Wednesday on RIght to Carry Law

The fight to allow Nebraskans to carry concealed weapons is now a decade old, but Sen. Jeanne Combs believes it will be passed in the upcoming legislative session.

Combs, a card-carrying member of the National Rifle Association, introduced her concealed-weapons measure (LB454) last year.

It was passed out of committee and sent to the floor for debate, but with the legislative session waning, she made a deal with Speaker Kermit Brashear of Omaha to pull the measure from the agenda.

In return, Brashear committed to scheduling the concealed weapons measure "for full and fair debate" at the beginning of the looming session, which starts Wednesday.

"I look forward to that discussion and debate and fully expect that the bill will be enacted by the Legislature and signed into law by the governor," Combs said.

In an Associated Press pre-session survey, 26 of 49 senators said they would favor allowing Nebraskans to carry concealed weapons, while five said they were leaning that way. Eight were opposed to the idea and two were leaning that way. Four were undecided and three did not answer the question. One senator did not participate in the survey. . . .