LANSING — The Michigan House passed a bipartisan proposal this week that would require the state to develop a course teaching students proper gun usage, cleaning and maintenance and safe hunting practices.
Schools would not be required to offer the course, and parents could opt their children out of the course if desired.
“The class will focus on teaching responsible stewardship of the woods, proper firearm usage and respect, and safe hunting practice,” said Rep. Curt VanderWall, (R) District 102, Ludington.
The bill — HB 4285 — passed Wednesday with a 101-7 vote.
“Hunting for sport is very much a part of the culture here in Michigan,” said Rep. Betsy Coffia, (D) District 103, Traverse City. “So it is important that our young people as they’re growing up, if they would like to go that direction, that they get the proper training for safety.”
The initiative would be based on the current hunter safety courses, which require 10 hours of total instruction, a written test and a hands-on field day.
“We want to make sure that if they’re exposed to a firearm, they know the safe way to handle that gun, to make sure it’s unloaded, to safely transport that,” VanderWall said.
Supporters of the proposal stressed that neither firearms nor ammo would be brought into schools at any point in the courses.
Students would be cleared to receive a hunting license upon completion of the field day, taught by a licensed instructor.
“This is not requiring the schools to do it, nor is it having it happen on school property with weapons,” Coffia said. “It is off-site in the appropriate location for that kind of training.”
If signed into law, Michigan would become the first state in the region to officially offer a firearm safety class in school.
Utah passed a law this year that requires firearm instruction once a year from kindergarten through 5th grade and at least once in middle and high school. Arkansas and Tennessee also passed laws establishing the courses, but left it up to state agencies to determine when they would be taught.
Utah and Arkansas allow parents to opt their children out of those lessons without penalty, while Tennessee does not allow the courses to be missed.
Similar legislation has fallen flat in some Democratic-led states, like Arizona, where Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed the policy in 2023. Opponents say that knowledge isn’t a substitute for more direct policies like safe storage laws or universal background checks.
“It’s the parents’ responsibility to control those firearms and keep them out of the hands of children,” said Ryan Bates, executive director of End Gun Violence Michigan. “We can’t put gun safety on kids.”
The bill still needs to go through the Democratic-controlled Senate.
A spokesperson for Gov. Whitmer said that she would review any legislation that makes it through both chambers.