AUSTIN — Gun-free zones at schools, bars, sporting events, hospitals and churches would be largely obsolete if Rep. Drew Springer has his way.

Springer, R-Muenster, has authored a bill — laid out Tuesday before a House committee — that he hopes eliminates most restrictions on where the state’s nearly 826,000 concealed handgun license holders can carry their weapons.

He said his bill would advance the rights of “responsible, law-abiding citizens.”

Even in a gun-friendly state — and Legislature — it’s unclear what kind of support there would be for such a far-reaching bill. And the effort Tuesday received stiff opposition from hospital officials and pastors, in addition to the usual gun control advocates.

But the early attention paid to the bill nonetheless underlines the Legislature’s outsized focus this year on firearms legislation.

“What a difference a session makes,” Springer said, noting the long list of people signed up to testify for or against the bill.

Much of the emphasis this year has been put on the open carry and campus carry bills, which have both passed the Senate. But dozens of other bills have been filed that would likewise loosen restrictions on the state’s firearms laws.

The Senate, for instance, approved a bill Tuesday that would allow people to use a lower caliber weapon to qualify for a concealed handgun license. And the House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee heard testimony on a litany of other gun bills.

But Springer’s bill, which was left pending in committee, received notable opposition.

Pastors talked about how churches are sacred places of worship, where there shouldn’t be a requirement that guns are allowed. And hospital officials said that weapons shouldn’t be introduced to the chaotic and emotional environment that can be a medical facility.

“You have to have common sense when it comes to allowing firearms into certain environments,” said Capt. Dan Birbeck of the Dallas County Hospital District Police Department.

Rep. Eric Johnson, D-Dallas, also expressed concern about what would happen if Springer’s bill and the open carry legislation passes. He raised the scenario of a victim of gun violence having to enter a hospital where people could openly carry handguns.

“Maybe they don’t want to see a waiting room full of people carrying firearms,” he said.

Springer said he would consider amending his bill to eliminate the possibility of open carry being applied to those locations. And he said he would also look at allowing certain places to individually choose to ban guns, as private businesses can currently do.

But he and other supporters didn’t back down from the bill’s overall premise.

“What I’m concerned about though is why we would oppose someone’s right to carry,” said Rep. Molly White, R-Belton.

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