Guns now allowed in national parks

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 (UPI) -- Licensed gun owners will be able to bring their weapons to U.S. national parks under a new Bush administration regulation.

The regulation was issued Friday by the Interior Department, The Salt Lake Tribune reported. It applies in every state except Illinois and Wisconsin, where guns are not allowed in state parks.

Under the previous rule, guns in national parks had to be unloaded and stowed, generally in car trunks. The rule was suspended in the few national parks where hunting is permitted during the season.

The change was opposed by all living former directors of the National Parks Service and the Coalition of National Parks Service Retirees. It was backed by the National Rifle Association.

Utah's two Republican senators, Orrin Hatch and Bob Bennett, urged Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne to make the change.

"As I've said before, I don't believe the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms ends where national park boundaries begin," Hatch said Friday.