BLOOMINGTON - The McLean County Board has been asked to vote on a resolution favoring protection of gun ownership rights under the Second Amendment.

The board's executive committee voted 7-1 Tuesday to forward such a resolution to the full board without recommendation for or against it. The County Board next meets at 9 a.m. May 20 at the Government Center in downtown Bloomington.

The Pro Second Amendment (Pro2A) Resolution was brought to county officials by supporters who said they have collected signatures from 2,850 McLean County residents in support of gun rights.

Eighty-one county boards in Illinois have OK'd the resolution, said one of the effort's organizers, Walter Biesiada of Normal, who was a Chicago police officer from 1965 to 1997. About 50 boards approved changing the proposed wording.

"We're thrilled," Biesiada said.

The sole dissenting vote was from George Gordon, an emeritus Illinois State University professor of politics and government from Normal.

"I think we should put it on hold until we can deal with it in a more substantive way," Gordon said.

As at a previous meeting of another committee dealing with the topic, he noted a Supreme Court ruling on the Second Amendment is expected in a couple of months.

The legislative subcommittee of the executive committee earlier voted 3-1 to endorse a revised form of the resolution. Again, Gordon cast the dissenting vote.

The resolution calls for opposition to laws infringing on the rights to keep and bear arms, endorses firearms for the defense of life, liberty and property and notes the economic benefits of safe forms of firearms recreation, such as hunting and shooting.

While the subcommittee substantially kept the phrasing about opposing legislation that infringes upon the right to keep and bear arms, it added the word "unreasonably" in front of "infringes." It also struck a phrase that called on people to "consider such laws (regulating gun ownership) to be unconstitutional and beyond lawful legislative authority."

"I'm pleased it went forward," Biesiada said, adding he hopes the board will return to the original wording. "It opens the door to remove the word 'unreasonably.'"