NORWICH – A proposal to allow anyone with a New York State pistol permit to carry a gun inside the Chenango County Office Building became a contested topic of discussion among members of the county’s Safety and Rules Committee on Wednesday.
The notion was first pitched by former Plymouth Supervisor Jerry Kreiner who, during his final Board of Supervisors meeting last month, said safety’s become a priority for many county employees.
Kreiner called on the board to amend a local law which currently bans possession of weapons in Chenango County office buildings. Although police and peace officers are already exempt from that law, Kreiner said the exemption ought to be extended to “any person possessing a valid New York State concealed carry pistol permit.”
However, the proposal was thought by some board members to be a knee-jerk reaction to the fatal shooting at a social service center in San Bernardino, Calif. in early December, and should go through the proper channels before reaching a final vote. It was referred to the Safety and Rules Committee for review.
Gun rights aside, it’s not a simple black and white issue, committee members argued Wednesday. Implications of the proposed amendment beckon questions over protection for county employees, as well as the tremendous financial burden that liability issues would put on county taxpayers.
Ultimately, the committee tabled the proposal until their next meeting in February, saying the issue warrants further investigation. Committee members said the county should consider other ways to improve building security, including the possibility of an armed security guard and metal detectors. Talks should also be had with insurance carriers to get a full sense of possible liability issues.
“I don’t agree with this. I won’t agree with it,” said Committee Chair Charles Mastro, citing the issue of liability and potential lawsuits that could cost the county tens of millions of dollars. “There are a lot of issues we need to look at. If there’s a liability issue and our insurance won’t help, we can’t do it.”
Safety in the County Office Building has been a topic of interest for several years, yet local officials have made few changes. It became a bigger concern when the county court system relocated out of the building last year, and took the court officers with them.
“I think this (amendment) could have been introduced because there’s an argument over second amendment rights. It’s the type of discussion all companies and government bodies are having,” said committee member Michael Khoury (Town of Smyrna). “But in this case, I think the intention of this law is for the protection of the people in this building and, in my opinion, it doesn’t accomplish that.”
In conjunction with his proposal to change the local law, Kreiner made an additional motion to amend an employee policy which prohibits all county personnel (barring law enforcement) from carrying concealed firearms inside the building. Kreiner said the same restrictions should apply to county employees, exempting those who have a concealed carry pistol permit.
That proposal has been passed to the county’s personnel committee to handle later this month.