>> In tonight's closer look, Wisconsin could become the next
state to allow people to carry concealed guns without a permit.
A bill introduced by Republican lawmakers is being called "Right
to Carry" and if passed would mean a person would no longer
have to go through the process of applying for a state license
which requires a background check and training.
The legislation would also allow carrying guns in places like
schools and police stations as long as they're not posted
against it.
A violation of that posting order would result in a
misdemeanor, not a felony.
Wisconsin has issued more than 300,000 concealed carry permits
since that law went into effect in 2011.
Before that, it was already legal to openly carry a gun.
Authors like to call their new bill "Right to Carry."
>> Let's talk about what state law is right now.
State law right now says you can walk into a gun shop, you can
purchase a gun, I can slap it on my hip and I can walk wherever
it's legal to carry.
What I can't do is put a sweater on.
We're taking that out and saying now you have the legal right to
put that sweater on.
We have a constitutional right to keep and bear arms.
It doesn't say you have a constitutional right to keep and
bear arms if the government gives you permission to do so.
>> Because under the proposed legislation, the state
permitting process that requires a background check and training
to carry a concealed weapon would go away.
>> It's $40 for the permit.
The classes can range from anywhere from $50 to $100.
I mean this is just--I don't want the right to defend
yourself to be a financial burden, either.
>> Opponents say they're surprised by the bill.
>> When we passed concealed carry back about four, five
years ago it was sold on the basis that you would have to
have a permit.
You would have to be trained and we would do a background check.
So this flies in the face of those two major provisions.
It would be permitless so you wouldn't need training.
But you also wouldn't have a background check anymore,
either.
>> This gun shop and shooting range is owned by a local police
officer.
>> The problem with a firearm is there's so much involved in it.
It's not just having a firearm.
There's the fundamentals of knowing how to efficiently use
the firearm.
Are you safe with a firearm?
Do you know how to shoot the firearm?
But more importantly do you have
to know how to justify the use of force?
You have to make sure that you know what deadly force is.
>> Even now under the current concealed carry law there is no
training requirement to actually handle a gun before getting a
permit.
>> Up with your right hand.
Index finger going to go alongside the frame,
not on the trigger.
>> Basic mistakes stand out to expert trainers.
>> Most people the first time they come in they handle a gun,
you can just see it the way they handle it.
Their finger is out on the trigger right away.
The direction of their muzzle is poor.
>> Okay, so fingers off the trigger.
You're good.
>> As a person who's a second amendment supporter,
everybody should own or have a gun
but I don't think that you should be able to just carry
just because you have the right to do it.
I think there should be some requirement
for training purposes.
>> Press, press, press, bang.
>> The National Rifle Association disagrees.
>> The NRA really believes that training should be left up to
the person and the individual.
I mean people know that's what they need.
A lot of people in Wisconsin have grown up in a hunting
tradition.
They've had firearms as part of their lives since they were
children and to have to jump through government hoops to have
to pay fees, to sit in classes that are really unnecessary for
them just to exercise a constitutional right, we think
that should be left to the person.
>> Wisconsin's so-called "Right to Carry" legislation is based
off what the NRA calls "Constitutional Carry."
>> This bill goes even way beyond even "Constitutional
Carry" in that there is a presumption now that you can
carry guns on school grounds and schools and police stations and
secure mental health facilities.
>> Under the bill bans against carrying firearms in those
places are eliminated but would allow locations to be posted
as prohibiting guns.
>> So what we did in this legislation is we took the state
out of it.
Where we repealed the state's gun-free school zone law.
The federal gun-free school zone law is still in effect and all
school districts, all schools, municipalities, government
entities, universities, mental healthcare facilities and
private landowners still have the right to post their
property.
>> It reduced the penalties for carrying a gun into these
dangerous places and it would no longer be a felony if you are
violating that law.
It would only be a misdemeanor.
>> We asked Governor Scott Walker this week if he supported
the proposed legislation.
>> I did sign a right to carry.
"Concealed Carry" is one of the most popular in the country
and I think it works just fine the way it is right now.
We've got a program where we've had one of the largest numbers
of any state in terms of people signing up for "Concealed Carry"
and I think it works fine the way it is right now.
>> The bill has been referred to the Committee on State Affairs.
A look ahead now to proposed changes to the state Medicaid
program.
Changes Governor Walker forecast in his February budget address.
>> For all who are able, we want to enable them to work.
"Wisconsin Works for Everyone" builds off of the positive
welfare reform started by my friend and yours, former
Governor Tommy Thompson under what was then called "Wisconsin
Works" or W2.
We want to ensure that people who are able to work actually
enter the work force.
For starters, that means that able-bodied adults will need to
be employed at least 80 hours a month to receive benefits like
food stamps.
If not, they'll need to be enrolled in our job training
program.
On top of that, we're working with the new administration and
Congress to get approval to expand drug testing for people
seeking public assistance.
If they fail the test, we provide treatment to get them
healthy and back into the workforce.