house resolution no.227
Reps. Green, Hall, Damoose, Hornberger, Hauck, Berman, Carra, Bezotte, Peterson, Steenland, Cambensy, Fink, Beson, LaFave, Markkanen, Maddock, Allor, Borton, Paquette, Posthumus, Outman, Griffin, Rendon, Mueller, Bollin, Beeler, Eisen, Liberati, Lightner, Martin, Meerman, O'Malley, Roth, Sabo, Shannon, Slagh, Tisdel, Wakeman and Whitsett offered the following resolution:
Whereas, The Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners was established on January 31, 1997 at Chief Okemos Sportsman's Club in Dimondale, Michigan by a group of passionate gun owners who began meeting in 1996 to defend and expand rights to responsible gun ownership; and
Whereas, The new organization placed an emphasis on responsible gun ownership education and working with the Legislature to craft laws which would have the support of voters and improve on existing law; and
Whereas, This group of passionate volunteers was motivated to reform practices of the local county gun boards and require that each gun board "shall issue" a concealed carry license to every qualified applicant; and
Whereas, Recognizing that membership growth was critical, the first members carried the organization in its early stages working to grow membership. As communication was key to spreading the word that an organization existed that would work with the Legislature for the good of Michigan's firearms owners, MCRGO created an internet talk list and first website, MCRGO.org, in 1998 which significantly expanded the growth of the organization; and
Whereas, MCRGO continued its successful efforts at growth, and by the spring of 2000 had grown to some 4000 members; and
Whereas, On January 2, 2001, Governor John Engler signed into law House Bill 4530, which became Public Act 381 of 2000. This new act dramatically altered the way concealed carry permits were issued across the state of Michigan; and
Whereas, MCRGO worked with Governor Jennifer Granholm to create Michigan's Self-Defense Act in 2006, eliminating the duty to retreat. The organization also worked with Governor Rick Snyder to pass concealed pistol license reform in 2015, eliminating county gun boards; and
Whereas, MCRGO established a concealed pistol license training program in 2016 leading to the certification of over 42,000 students by the end of 2021 and contributing to Michigan's exponential increase in current concealed pistol license holders. MCRGO has taken dynamic action to expand the diversity of responsible gun owners in Michigan and as a result is now the largest state-based firearms organization in the United States; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives, That the members of this legislative body commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners. We honor its members, volunteers, directors, and staff for their role in promoting safe use and ownership of firearms through education, litigation, and legislation over the past quarter century and recognize that the coalition and its partners are essential to protecting Article 1, Section 6 of the Michigan Constitution.