West Virginia University’s Board of Governors is scheduled to vote Friday, April 12, on a campus carry rule that would govern how the university implements a new law allowing weapons to be carried on campuses.
On March 1, 2023, Gov. Jim Justice signed Senate Bill 10 into law that allows people with concealed carry permits to bring firearms onto public college and university campuses. This made West Virginia the 12th state to pass campus carry legislation.
The new law takes effect in July.
The WVU board’s Rule 5.1.4 represents the university’s operational implementation of the law. The board is set to vote on the rule during a 10:15 a.m. meeting at the Erickson Alumni Center in Morgantown.
The meeting also has a Zoom component and can be accessed through the application or by phone with the following information:
- Meeting ID: 955 7442 1827
- Passcode: RTh9GeyM
- Dial-in: (888) 475-4499
A full agenda for the meeting is available on the Board of Governors website,
The WVU Faculty Senate met last week and also is preparing for implementation of the new law. More will be known about the university’s implementation plan after the board’s vote on Friday, according to a report given at the meeting by Diana Davis, a member of the Campus Carry Communication Team.
The university held a public comment period for the new rule; those comments are available to read at .
Opponents of the law say it will create a public safety issue on campus, while proponents call it an expansion of Second Amendment rights in West Virginia.
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The commenters’ identities were withheld, but remarks fell on both sides of the issue.
One commenter said an exception should be made so that deadly weapons are prohibited from all classrooms during periods of instruction.
“It is absurd that deadly weapons are prohibited from campus safety buildings where the police who occupy those buildings carry weapons, and are trained in their use, yet they would be permitted in a classroom,†the commenter wrote.
They continued, “Equally absurd is the prohibition of concealed weapons from the state capital while those working there promote having them carried by college students in classroom settings.â€
Another commenter said the new law will only increase the likelihood of a gun-involved incident on campus and possibly negatively affect enrollment.
“Allowing people to concealed carry on campus can only increase the probability these events will happen. Many students who attend this campus will not feel comfortable attending here if this policy gets approved, including myself,†the commenter wrote. “It could also deter potential students from attending, and the university needs an increased attendance rate right now with budget cuts. Allowing for concealed carry on the university ground will ultimately hurt the student population.â€
According to the proposed WVU rule, it would be the university president’s responsibility to provide either a secure location for storage in at least two on-campus residence halls at the Morgantown campus — as well as one each at the Beckley and Keyser campuses — or make available an appropriate safe that may be installed in a resident’s room.
The president also would be required to develop a policy that reserves an appropriate amount of rooms in on-campus residence halls where the storage rooms are located for residents with a concealed carry license. That section also allows WVU to charge a “reasonable fee for the use of the secure storage location or a safe.â€
One commenter was concerned that this section has the potential to make it difficult for students to keep weapons in their dorm rooms.
“Right now, this section would seemingly make it hard for a student with a permit to keep their gun in their dorm room, even going so far as to single them out by lumping them together in a section of a dorm. Or charging them some so-called ‘reasonable’ fee to keep their gun with them in some elaborate secure section of a room,†they wrote. “A student with a gun should be able to have any room and a small portable safe provided with a very small fee for their gun.â€
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