Indiana lawmakers advance bill to fund voluntary handgun training for teachers

Indiana state lawmakers have advanced a bill that would fund voluntary handgun training for schoolteachers. 

Indiana’s Senate voted 42-8 to approve the measure on Tuesday, just days after the capital city of Indianapolis hosted the annual National Rifle Association (NRA) convention. 

House Bill 1177, which passed in the state House in February, seeks to create a specialized firearms safety, education and training curriculum for teachers and other school staff. The proposed bill will also allow schools to apply for funding to provide “counseling services to students, teachers, school staff, and school employees in the event of a school shooting.”

Proponents of the bill say that the 40 hours of optional training will help teachers be prepared to defend themselves and their students in an active shooter situation, but opponents of the measure have other thoughts. 

“How is 40 hours of training going to prepare you to shoot a kid in your classroom?” state Sen. Andrea Hunley (D) asked on Tuesday. “This is not going to stop school shootings.

According to state law, Indiana school districts are allowed to permit schoolteachers to be armed, but no training is mandated.

The proposed measure comes in the wake of the latest string of mass shootings. This past weekend, a gunman opened fire inside a dancehall studio in Dadeville, Ala., killing four people and injuring 28 others. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.