Campus Carry Legislation at UWG
Georgia House Bill 280 - commonly known as "campus carry" - took effect July 1, 2017. A committee of faculty, staff and administrative representatives is developing a strategy that will ensure UWG complies with the law.
The University System of Georgia (USG) has provided guidance to its institutions on how to implement the legislation. Students, faculty and staff should not attempt to monitor or enforce the statute. Only law enforcement personnel will be responsible for doing so. If you have questions or concerns, please contact UWG's general counsel or university police.
For more information on HB 280, please visit the USG website.
Checking for Dual Enrolled High School Students
It is the responsibility of concealed lawful weapons carriers to comply to the provisions of H.B. 280. Under the law, weapons cannot be carried in rooms where high school students enrolled in classes are present.
UWG has created a process that allows lawful weapons carriers to quickly check if high school students are enrolled in classes in certain rooms at certain times. To access the process, log on to myUWG with a valid user ID and password at myuwg.westga.edu and select the Self-Service Banner tab. This will bring up the main menu. From there...
- Click on "Campus Carry";
- Click on "USG House Bill 280 Guidance" for the USG guidance on the bill;
- Click on "UWG Campus Carry" for the UWG website for campus carry information;
- Click on "Schedule Information for Lawful Weapons Carriers" for a detailed schedule showing whether high school students are enrolled in each of the courses on a student's or faculty member’s schedule; and
- View the "High School Students Enrolled" column for information. If the column includes a "Y," high school students are enrolled. If it contains an "N," high school students are not enrolled.
Please note, this does not indicate whether lawful weapons carriers can carry into a classroom. It simply denotes whether a high school student is enrolled in a class in that particular room at the time denoted. For example, if there is an "N" in the column for a specific classroom, but the class is in the coliseum, lawful weapons carriers cannot carry in that classroom because carrying concealed weapons is never allowed in the coliseum. Again, it is up to lawful weapons carrier to determine where they can carry concealed weapons.
USG Answers to HB280 Questions
Yes. HB 280 sets out specific excepted areas in which lawful weapon carriers may not carry handguns, and laboratories are not one of those exceptions. Handguns would only be prohibited in a laboratory if the particular space were to fall within one of the specific exceptions.
Yes. Summer camps are not set out as an exception to the ability to carry concealed handguns on campus in HB 280. Handguns are prohibited, however, in childcare spaces, which include programs for children under 18 years of age that are located within an enclosed space behind a controlled access point (meaning access via personnel stationed at the door or an electronic mechanism) limited to authorized people.
Yes. Health centers and their examination rooms are not specifically excepted from the general rule that lawful weapons carriers may carry concealed handguns on campus. Handguns are only prohibited in those areas of health centers that fall within a specific exception in HB 280, such as faculty, staff and administrative offices.
Handguns are prohibited in buildings or property that are used for intercollegiate games at all times, not just during the events. Similarly, handguns are prohibited throughout the entire facility, not just those specific areas of the facility in which games are played. The same is true of student housing facilities; handguns are prohibited throughout the facilities, not only in the specific areas where students reside.
No. HB 280 only applies “in any building or on real property owned by or leased to any public … college, or university … or other public institution of postsecondary education.” When students, faculty or staff leave campus for school-related activities, they will be governed by the weapons laws that apply to their off-campus locations.
No. HB 280 only applies within the State of Georgia. People at locations that are owned or leased by USG colleges and universities but lie outside of Georgia will be governed by the applicable local laws of the city, county, state and/or country in which the facilities lie.
No. HB 280 only prohibits handguns in rooms and spaces that are being used for classes in which high school students are enrolled. It does not prohibit lawful weapon carriers from carrying concealed handguns in other areas where those high school students may go while on campus.
Yes
No. State law grants lawful weapons carriers the ability to carry handguns to public college and university classes (except those in which high school students are enrolled), and faculty members may not ask lawful weapons carriers to reveal that they are carrying concealed handguns or in any way discourage them from doing what they are legally allowed to do.
No. It is the responsibility of those who choose to carry handguns on campus to make themselves aware of where and when they can do so. They can learn which of their classes include high school students by asking the registrar, as can faculty members and their classmates. In fact, the USG does not recommend that faculty members make announcements in class because it may lead to confusion among students resulting from inconsistencies between different professors and different classes.
Yes. Faculty members can provide information by linking to the USG guidance at the usg.edu website.
It is the responsibility of those who choose to carry handguns on campus to make arrangements for the proper and safe storage of those guns. Current law already allows for the securing of guns in parked cars. lawful weapons carriers can also make arrangements for storage off-campus
Yes. The immediate situation should be handled by law enforcement, but afterwards the conduct may be treated as a violation of the student code of conduct or the personnel rules. That process should then be handled in the same manner as any other student or employee misconduct case would be handled.
No. HB 280 prohibits handguns in faculty, staff and administrative offices. It does not give employees discretion to decide whether to carry handguns – or allow others to do so – in their offices.
No. State law only allows lawful weapons carriers to have handguns on campus in two ways: carried in a concealed manner and locked in a car. It does not allow handguns to be otherwise left unattended.