Haslam and House, Senate speakers’ duel over guns in state Capitol complex shows no signs of letting up

Staff photo by Tim Barber / Tennessee Commissioner of Safety and Homeland Security Bill Gibbons talk about the Public Safety Action Plan during an editorial board meeting Thursday at the Times Free Press. Staff photo by Tim Barber / Tennessee Commissioner of Safety and Homeland Security Bill Gibbons talk about the Public Safety Action Plan during an editorial board meeting Thursday at the Times Free Press.

By Andy Sher February 14, 2016 5 min read

The Associated Press / Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, R-Blountville, answers questions at the Tennessee Press Association convention, Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016, in Nashville, Tenn.

NASHVILLE – Gov. Bill Haslam and the House and Senate speakers are sticking to their guns over whether to let handgun-carry permit holders bring firearms into areas of Tennessee’s Capitol complex.

Haslam isn’t thrilled about the prospect, and thinks he’s got the say-so. Top administration officials cite three statutes putting General Services, an executive-branch department, in charge of the Capitol and nearby annex buildings.

A fourth statute specifically says the Department of Safety and Homeland Security is in charge of security in Legislative Plaza, the War Memorial Building and the Capitol.

Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey’s spokesman, though, points Article II, Section 12 of the Tennessee Constitution, which says the House and Senate are in charge of their “own rules” and that each “shall have all other powers necessary for a branch of the Legislature of a free State.”

And that’s where the duel stood Friday when reporters spotted the man in charge of security, Safety Commissioner Bill Gibbons, walking through Legislative Plaza.