In Kansas, gun-rights supporters face pushback from campuses

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — With university communities pushing back and a political shift in the Legislature, gun-rights advocates who've enjoyed a string of victories in Kansas are facing a new test of their clout as lawmakers consider repealing a law allowing concealed guns on campuses starting in July.

A state Senate committee was having a hearing Thursday on a bill that would give universities, colleges and public hospitals and clinics a permanent exemption from a 2013 law that allowed gun owners to carry concealed weapons into more public buildings. The law granted the universities, colleges and hospitals a four-year exemption.

The Federal and State Affairs Committee's hearing comes only four days after a 19-year-old male Kansas State University student was transported to a hospital with a self-inflicted gunshot wound from a weapon kept in a dorm room against university rules. While supporters of the rollback bill are pointing to the incident, their push to keep concealed weapons off campus has been building for months.

"There are a lot of concerns about safety," said Andrew Bennett, a Kansas State math professor and its Faculty Senate president. "I think the fact that we had the accident on campus brings home, when you have guns, accidents tend to follow."

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