Capitol sign part of legislature’s philosophical divides

DES MOINES - The philosophical differences among legislators who make up the new 86th Iowa General Assembly appear to begin the minute they pass through the state Capitol doors to open their 2015 session on Monday.

Administrators in both the Iowa House and the Iowa Senate, as well as the executive branch of state government, say the policy at the Statehouse is that no one brings a dangerous weapon into the Capitol building except certified law enforcement officers. But the application gets murky when it comes to state lawmakers.

The issue of legislators packing heat came to light during the 2014 election campaign when state Sen. Brad Zaun - an Urbandale Republican running for Congress - told The Des Moines Register editorial board that sometimes he would carry a 9 mm handgun while working in the Senate chamber out of concern for security gaps at the Statehouse. He also said he knew of several legislative colleagues who also carry firearms in their respective chambers, although he didn't name them.

Both Iowa Senate Secretary Michael Marshall and Iowa House chief clerk Carmine Boal said the Iowa administrative code prohibits any member of the public from carrying a dangerous weapon in Capitol complex buildings and that the General Assembly has not exempted any of its members, staff or other state employees from the rule adopted by the state Department of Administrative Services and enforced by the state Department of Public Safety.

The policy is posted at the doors but Boal and others said things get murky when you mix in separation of powers issues, passionate feelings about the Second Amendment, and legal opinions indicating Capitol security provisions that apply to the public do not include legislators.

'We try to enforce that rule. But it's not a perfect policy,” said Boal, herself a former state representative. 'There's nothing in the code that would say they can't. That's kind of subjective, I guess. It's whether you consider a legislator a state employee, I think that's really the question and people can interpret that in different ways.”

'Do I think there's never been anybody that's a legislator carry into this building? I don't think I'm that naive. I think there are,” Boal added.

House Speaker Kraig Paulsen, R-Hiawatha, was more to the point.

'It is my belief that every day I've served, there's somebody in the chamber that is carrying and I fully expect that to continue,” the House leader said. 'If a law-abiding citizen wants to exercise their Second Amendment constitutional right, I think it's a good thing.”

Iowa State Patrol Capt. Mark Logsdon, head of Capitol security, called the situation 'a mess” that makes it challenging and confusing to enforce when there are two sets of rules.

'I think the Capitol is one of the most protected buildings in Des Moines, if not in Iowa, and we have a uniform presence in there all the way, and I'm certainly very cognizant of the Second Amendment rights that people have, but this is something that they have to figure out on their own,” he said.

'If they want to take the approach that we're different or above the rules that everyone else abides by, then that's going to have to be the manner in which they take the effect of that,” Logsdon added. 'I don't really think it's a very wise approach to have because I think if you have rules, it's important that everyone abides by those rules.”

Marshall said the policy has been and will continue to be that 'the Legislature will abide by the policy in place for the members of the public, which is no weapons in the building.”

Compliance is essentially the honor system because Statehouse employees and legislators have badges that allow them to bypass the metal detectors and X-ray machines that scan bags. Zaun, for instance, has indicated he would stop bringing a firearm to the Capitol but he also would like to see a policy discussion about Capitol security.

Marshall said policing Iowa's Capitol security rules would have to be on a complaint-driven basis only, noting that 'certainly we're not going to be searching legislators' bags or coats or what have you. But the policy has been that people aren't bringing weapons in and hopefully everyone's abiding by that policy.”

The issue is one that legislatures across the country are grappling with, Marshall said, with some states allowing members of the public with concealed weapons permits to continue to carry while others do not. Violation of Iowa's administrative rule barring weapons in the Capitol is a simple misdemeanor offense.

Iowa's regulations allow security personnel to demand visitors identify themselves before they enter the Capitol. Guns, explosives and sharp objects, including knives and scissors, are prohibited.

A total of $373,741 was spent on security at the Iowa Capitol building for fiscal 2014, according to legislative branch officials, including the salaries for nine full-time employees.

In calendar year 2014, Logsdon said there were 160,832 people that were checked through the state Capitol security check points. No weapons were confiscated or noted, he added.