FRANKFORT, Ky. — The passage of the Crisis Aversion and Rights Retention bill (CARR) will not happen this year, but those behind the measure are still hopeful it will happen in a future session.

What You Need To Know

  • Senate Bill 13 will not pass this year, the bill sponsor has signaled

  • It’s called a Crisis Aversion and Right Retention bill

  • CARR allows law enforcement to temporarily take someone’s firearms if they are experiencing a mental health crisis

  • The organization behind CARR have released a new poll signaling strong support for the bill among Republican voters

“So no, we are certain of the righteousness of our cause and we are not going home,” Whitney Austin, founder of Whitney/Strong, said at a news conference Friday.

Senate Bill 13 was filed by Whitney Westerfield, R-Fruit Hill, and cosponsored by Louisville Democrat David Yates in January. While it received a committee assignment in March, it was never given a hearing.

The bill would allow law enforcement to temporarily take a person’s firearms who is experiencing a mental health crisis and is a danger to themselves or others.

Twenty-one states and Washington D.C. have similar laws.

Westerfield believes there is more support for CARR behind the scenes than there is in public.

“There’s a lot of fear,” Westerfield said. “There’s a lot of concern about the political blowback. It’s my hope that when this finally pricks the consciousness of my colleagues up here, that they finally realize this is not the political liability they’ve been told that it is.”

The nonprofit Whitney/Strong, which advocates for common sense gun law reform, released the results of a January poll that signals strong support for CARR.

According to Austin, the poll, conducted by UpONE Insights, found that of the 600 Republican voters interviewed, 72% supported the passage of a CARR bill. It also found strong support of those who support former President Donald Trump, live in rural area, and who are supporters of the National Rifle Association. 

“So even if you can’t get behind the policy rationale for CARR, now legislators, fellow co-legislators, at least for the next few months, as far as I’m concerned, you’ve got political reason to get behind CARR,” Westerfield said.

Austin says this will be a useful data set moving forward in her discussions with lawmakers.

“The research is very, very clear. When you put time and space between someone who is experiencing a crisis has easy access to lethal means like firearms and is intent upon harming themselves or others, you save lives,” Austin said.

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