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This past week, the Michigan House Natural Resources Committee took up House Bill 4285. The legislation would provide for firearms safety education in grades 6 to 12 using the Michigan Department of Natural Resources' Hunter Safety Program. This would be an optional extracurricular school program with the field portion provided elsewhere. This program would be taught by a person certified by the MDNR as a hunter education instructor.
Ensuring safety and teaching due regard for guns are essential aspects of responsible gun ownership. Normalizing firearms as tools to be respected rather than toys can have a big impact on how teens view and respond to them. MCRGO supports the legislation.
It is estimated that there are 500 million civilian-owned firearms in the U.S. As of 2024, according to Ammo.com, 43% of American households own guns. Firearms production in the United States has more than doubled in the last quarter century, reaching a record 23.4 million guns sold in 2021. Guns aren't going away. Rather than making guns a taboo topic in schools, firearm safety education demystifies them and reduces the risk of accidents.
House Bill 4285 helps fill a gap between firearms safety education taught at the elementary school level through programs like the NRA's Eddie Eagle and adult firearms safety education such as that provided by MCRGO's Concealed Pistol Safety course.
House Bill 4285 is a reintroduction of a bill from the 2023-2024 legislative session that had overwhelming bipartisan support before being caught up in drama of December's lame duck. Odds favor this legislation being signed into law. Due to divided control of the Michigan Legislature, it is likely to be one of very few firearms bills reaching the governor's desk this year.
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