Legislature Adopts Resolution Supporting NPS Rule to Allow National Park Users to Carry Firearm for Protection

JUNEAU – The Alaska Legislature has overwhelmingly endorsed a resolution to send a message to the Obama administration in support of a National Park Service regulation allowing park users to carry a concealed handgun for personal protection. Senate Joint Resolution 3 passed with just one dissenting vote in the House.

“I thought it was important to express our appreciation to President Bush for adopting the regulation to allow park users to carry the firearms they need for personal protection in national parks,” said Sen. Gene Therriault, prime sponsor of SJR 3.

The regulation was adopted in the waning days of the Bush administration and went into effect in January. It was challenged by gun control and environmental groups, who argued the Bush administration had not conducted a thorough assessment of the environmental impact the regulation could cause. A federal judge in March issued a temporary injunction on the regulation.

Alaska contains more than 75 percent of the land mass of the National Park system, and Alaskans understand how important it is to have personal protection when in the wilderness, Therriault said.

“Whether they are used for bear protection, obtaining food in a survival situation, or signaling for assistance when needed, firearms have been on the hips and in the arms of Alaskans since the frontier was first explored,” Therriault said. “Today, the unbroken wilderness and inherent dangers of the backcountry have been exacerbated with the conditioning of animals to lose their natural tendency of avoiding humans.”

The resolution calls on the Obama administration to support the rule and improve on it. While the concealed carry rule has been temporarily held up by the injunction, park users can carry handguns into the parks, as long as they are unloaded, disassembled, and not immediately accessible in a backpack.

“Carrying around an unassembled, unloaded gun in the Denali backcountry is not going to be of much use if you are suddenly charged by a bear,” Therriault said.