North Carolina is planning controversial new laws that aim to ease gun restrictions in schools and allow teachers to carry weapons while on school grounds and even provide a financial incentive for educators to arm themselves. Current North Carolina law prohibits firearms on school property, except when a permittee’s handgun is secured inside a compartment in a locked vehicle.
After last year’s school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high school in Parkland, Florida, which killed 17 people and spurred the March for Our Lives movement, public interest in creating more effective school security has grown.
The house bill, named the School Self-Defense Act, would allow certain teachers or staff members to carry concealed weapons on school property in order to respond to acts of violence or imminent threats of violence. Volunteers would be required to complete 16 hours of training focused on an active shooter situation.