A bill coined the \Personal Protection Act,"" which would allow firearms to be carried on campus grounds, passed the Republican-led state Senate Friday.
The Senate has, for the first time in 130 years, voted to allow citizens to carry concealed weapons in a 24-8 vote.
Under the provisions of the bill, law-abiding citizens with a clean record and no history of mental illness or drug and alcohol addictions could be granted a permit to carry a gun after passing a background check and attending a firearm safety training course.
The bill allows people to carry arms in many places but prohibits their presence in courthouses, schools and university buildings. In other words, the bill would allow a student to carry a firearm on Bascom Hill, just not in Bascom Hall.
Political science Professor Dennis Dresang said he does not like the idea of having guns on campus and cited an incident that took place a couple of years ago at the University of Iowa. In that incident, a student there shot a teacher and other students in a dispute over grades.
""I don't know about you, but I don't like the idea of walking around campus knowing that people might have guns in their backpacks or on their holsters. That's not the kind of setting I want to work in,"" Dresang said.
In the next step, the bill is expected to pass in the Assembly. The next scheduled floor period is Nov. 9, which will be their first chance to vote on the bill.
Doyle has said he will veto the bill if it reaches him. In this case, supporters in the Senate and Assembly must work toward gaining the two-thirds majority needed to override the veto.
Overriding the governor's veto has not occurred in Wisconsin in 20 years.
Sen. Dave Zien, R-Eau Claire, who introduced the bill, said a veto could be overridden.
""We have worked long and hard for the right of personal protection, and this is first time in history this bill has passed the Senate. The 24-8 vote ensures that we will have enough votes to override any possible veto,"" he said in a public statement.
Owners of establishments including hospitals, child-care centers, places of worship and domestic abuse shelters may choose to restrict the possession of firearms in their facilities under the bill.
Small businesses would be able to prohibit firearms on their property if they post notice, and employers would also be able to restrict their employees from carrying guns at work.
