Stephens County Passes Second Amendment Resolution

Stephens County commissioners unanimously passed a resolution declaring the northeast Georgia county a Second Amendment Sanctuary County.

The resolution prohibits any support or participation in any way with the “implementation of federal acts, orders, rules, laws or regulations in violation of the Second Amendment of the United States Constitution.”

The resolution declares the Stephens County Board of Commissioners “will not authorize or appropriate funds, resources, employees, agencies, contractors, buildings, detention centers or offices for the purpose of enforcing or assisting in the enforcement of any element of any act, laws, orders, mandates, rules or regulations that infringe on the right by the people to keep and bear arms.”

The 5-0 vote by the Stephens County Board of Commissioners comes just a week after neighboring Habersham County became Georgia’s first Second Amendment Sanctuary County, something that is occurring across the country and particularly in Virginia where the governor and state legislature are moving forward with several unconstitutional gun bans and restrictions.

Meanwhile, other Georgia counties may soon follow with Second Amendment Sanctuary resolutions. There’s an organized effort in Floyd County, with a rally scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 25, at the American Legion Farm at 493 Jones Bend Road in Armuchee.

Habersham County Commission Chairman Stacy Hall issued this statement when helping pass his county’s resolution on Jan. 13, 2020:

“I am often reminded of an exchange in 1787 when delegates were drafting the Constitution. On the last day of the convention, Ben Franklin emerged from the building when a woman asked him what the founders had given the American people. His answer, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

The words “if you can keep it” offer a distinct reminder to us all that each and every one of us have a part to play in keeping our great republic intact. Certainly, exercising our right to vote is a big part of that. But so too, I believe, is standing up to the government when we believe our Constitutional rights are under attack.

Sadly, there are many in federal, state, and local governments all over our country who do not agree with our second amendment right to keep and bear arms or seek to limit it. It is of paramount importance that we, the people, remind these legislators that their simple dislike or a Constitutional amendment makes it no less Constitutional and that we will not give those right up easily. The Constitution is not an aging, irrelevant document with increasing insignificance over time. Quite the contrary, it is the very fabric that this great country is woven together. It is a living, breathing document that protects us from an overreaching and overbearing government. 

It is with this in mind, the Habersham Board of Commissioners tonight join a growing chorus of communities throughout the United States by considering a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary County Resolution affirming our support of the Constitution and signaling that we will not help enforce any unconstitutional law which seeks to limit our 2nd Amendment rights. Habersham County is proud to be the first county in Georgia to do this.”

Click here to view the Habersham County 2nd Amendment Resolution approved on Jan. 13, 2020.