Measure aimed at protecting gun ranges advances in state Senate

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Florida
THE LEDGER
Measure aimed at protecting gun ranges advances in state Senate
By David Royse
February 16, 2004

Gun ranges would be immune from existing lawsuits brought by
environmental regulators and cleanup costs would be shifted to the state
under a proposal that moved forward in the Senate Monday.

The bill, unanimously approved by the Senate Comprehensive Planning
Committee, was changed to preserve the prospect of liability for gun
ranges that refuse to take steps to try and avoid lead contamination in
the future. But it still is disliked by many in the environmental
community who say it endangers public safety and may violate federal
clean water requirements.

There's also a question about how the state would pay for cleaning up
gun ranges under the measure. The bill doesn't specify where the money
would come from - and even some who voted for it said their continued
support depended on finding a dedicated source of money for such
projects.

Originally, the measure would have given blanket immunity to gun ranges
from any litigation brought by regulators trying to clean up
contamination from the lead that builds up from years of bullets hitting
the ground.

Gov. Jeb Bush implied last week he wouldn't sign such a bill - saying
that blanket immunity for potential polluters wouldn't be a good idea
and the Senate panel was already working on a compromise measure.

Under the new proposal (SB 1156), any existing lawsuits by state or
local government agencies against gun ranges must be withdrawn.

That would include the lawsuit that led to the bill. The Skyway Gun Club
in Pinellas County is being sued by the Southwest Florida Water
Management District, which owns the adjacent land and says it's worried
about lead pollution in a lake where children fish.

But the National Rifle Association, which is pushing for the bill, says
the water district and the state Department of Environmental Protection
use cleanup lawsuits to harass gun ranges. NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer
told the Senate panel Monday that DEP was an agency "out of control."

"This bill will stop government agencies from using their massive
resources to shut down ranges," Hammer said.

Under the new bill, if DEP can prove there's a harmful lead buildup at a
gun range, the department must be allowed to clean it up - if a source
of money for such a cleanup program can be found.

DEP will also work with ranges to make sure they don't pollute the soil
or groundwater in the future. Ranges that don't use the modern
technologies could face some liability.

This article can be viewed at:
http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040216/APN/402160841

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