Mayor Rick Blangiardi proposes banning guns in schools, parks and other locations

In preparation for the issuance of permits for Honolulu citizens to carry guns in public, Mayor Rick Blangiardi said today he is proposing prohibiting firearms in schools, government buildings, parks, voting locations, and public transportation.

Blangiardi said he is asking the Honolulu City Council to consider a draft ordinance that also includes a default rule banning guns in private businesses and charitable organizations but permitting the property owners to decide whether to allow guns on the premises.

The default rule means that property owners do not need to “spend money putting up signs saying that guns are allowed or prohibited,” according to a news release from the mayor’s office.

The rule will help “ease confusion” and reduce the possibility of confrontations in stores, restaurants, and hospitals once people legally can pack guns in public.

There are more than 400 applications to carry a gun around town awaiting approval by Honolulu police Chief Arthur “Joe” Logan.

HPD is hosting a public hearing on Tuesday at 10 a.m. in the first floor conference room A of HPD’s headquarters at 801 South Beretania St. to consider draft rules guiding the issuance of firearm permits and licenses. The public is encouraged to submit written testimony at HPDLTC@honolulu.gov.

Blangiardi’s request is in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen, and the “reality that the city must allow for public carrying of firearms.”

“The Supreme Court’s recent ruling requiring the city to allow for public carrying of firearms presents a formidable and unprecedented challenge for our state, and all of our local communities. Consequently we will take the appropriate measures to prohibit guns from certain ‘sensitive places’ including schools and government buildings,” said Blangiardi in the news release. “Our state has restricted public carrying of firearms for nearly 170 years and as a result, has one of the lowest gun-violence rates in the country and we want it to stay that way.”