We're getting to the time of year when lawmakers start pre-filing bills for the 2026 legislative sessions, and in Florida Democrats have introduced a number of measures that are blatant attacks on our right to keep and bear arms.
There is one bill, however, that I think is at least worthy of discussion among gun owners and Second Amendment advocates. HB 155, sponsored by Democrat Rep. Yvonne Hinson, would create a "Gun Violence Prevention Pilot Program" in Gainesville, Florida aimed at individuals at high risk of both committing violent crimes and becoming the victims of violent offenses. The program would offer participants access to mental health services, help obtaining a GED or high school diploma, and job training. It would also work with the local state's attorney and public defender to offer participants charged with crimes like illegal gun possession a way to stay out of jail so long as they stay on the right side of the law.
The bill doesn't target legal gun owners or create any new criminal offenses. Instead, it's a targeted approach to combatting "gun violence" that focuses on the offenders themselves, rather than cast a wide net of criminality over folks exercising their Second Amendment rights.
Hinson has sponsored one of those bills too, unfortunately. HB 159 would make it a crime to "store a handgun, whether loaded or unloaded, in an unoccupied, unsecured private conveyance or vessel unless the handgun is kept from ordinary observation and view and secured with a device or mechanism that is securely affixed to the private conveyance or vessel or kept locked within a trunk, utility or glove box, or other locked container."
Hinson is no friend to Second Amendment supporters, so I understand why some 2A advocates are opposed to both of her gun-related bills.
Outside of the legislature, the bill is facing pushback from gun rights advocates. Luis Valdes, the Florida director of Gun Owners of America, said he is monitoring the bill and would testify against it if it reaches committee.
He believes the bill violates the Second Amendment, and “is using mental health as a cover to institute gun control.”
“Violence is all-encompassing, because if you simply remove firearms from the picture, someone can still be violent,” said Valdes.
Valdes does agree that mental health deserves more government funding, but should not be linked to gun laws.
GOA believes gun control and mental health are “two completely different things,” and “more importantly, it doesn't really resolve the issue that is the mental health crisis in the United States,” he said.
You can read the bill for yourself here, but I've gone over it line by line and can't find anything within the legislation that would violate the right to keep and bear arms. As I said, the legislation creates no crimes or penalties for violating existing law. If anything it's designed to help keep teenagers and young adults charged with possessory gun offenses away from courtrooms, which in turn keeps their Second Amendment rights intact so long as they stay on the right side of the law in the future.
What about using mental health as a cover to institute gun control? The bill would provide participants with access to:
- Individual therapy sessions with qualified professionals or mental health counselors to address personal mental health issues.
- Facilitated group therapy sessions to provide peer support and shared experiences.
- Family therapy sessions involving family members to address familial issues contributing to mental health problems.
- Trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy for participants who have experienced trauma.
- Art and music therapies to help participants express80 emotions and cope with stress.
- Substance abuse treatment programs addressing substance abuse issues that may contribute to violent behavior.
- Mediation training.
- Restoration of relationships.
- Resilience and leadership skills
Now, it's possible that some participants would be referred to the state for a mental health evaluation and potential involuntary commitment, which could lead to them losing their Second Amendment rights. Of course, that same scenario could play out with anyone seeking mental health treatment, in or outside of this pilot program. But there's nothing in HB 155 that would expand the factors for disqualifying someone from exercising their Second Amendment rights because of mental health concerns. It would still take an involuntary commitment or an adjudication of mental defectiveness before someone could be prohibited from possessing a firearm.
I agree with Valdes that the phrase "gun violence" is problematic, and that violence in general is the real issue. I suspect if Hinson renamed her proposed project a "Violence Prevention Pilot Program" and removed any specific mention of firearms, she'd be likely to garner bipartisan support from some Republican lawmakers. But in my opinion, even targeting this pilot program to individuals at risk of perpetrating or becoming the victims of gun-involved crime isn't reason enough for Second Amendment advocates to oppose this bill. We are talking, after all, about the criminal misuse of firearms, not gun ownership in general or any activities protected by the Second Amendment.
As 2A advocates, we should stand firmly opposed to legislation that would restrict our right to keep and bear arms in any way, and we should also be on guard for bills that appear neutral on the surface but could be used to target lawful gun owners. We should also, however, support legislation that takes a targeted approach to reducing crime, especially crimes involving firearms.
We know that a disproportionate amount of violent crime is committed by a very small segment of the population; one study, for instance found that 1% of the population accounts for 63% of all violent crime convictions. This is who Hinson's bill is aimed at, and its goal is to stop them from committing crimes without putting any additional laws on the books. That's something 2A activists should be able to get behind, even if the bill comes from a Democrat who doesn't seem to have much, if any, respect for our Second Amendment rights.
