JEFFERSON CITY - Gun-rights advocates in the Missouri House easily turned back attempts Thursday to water down a bill that would legalize the carrying of concealed weapons throughout the state.

A day after gun-rights supporters from throughout Missouri held a rally in the Capitol rotunda, the House opened debate on one of the state's most divisive issues of the last decade.

Rep. Frank Barnitz, the Lake Spring Democrat who sponsored the bill, asked for limited debate, saying the issue had been debated for 11 years. He noted that the issue had been submitted to voters three years ago.

Voters rejected that referendum by 44,000 votes. Yet Barnitz asserted that the majority of Missouri residents supported his current proposal.

Opponents of the plan, though outnumbered, began proposing changes to the bill. After about 90 minutes, House leaders halted debate and promised to bring it up again Monday.

The bill would allow anyone 21 and older to transport a gun concealed within the passenger compartment of a vehicle. Current law requires that the gun be in the open, such as on the seat or the dashboard.

The bill would also allow Missourians to apply for a permit to carry a concealed firearm in public. And it would require Missouri to allow people to carry concealed weapons if they hold a permit issued by another state.

Permits would be issued to applicants at least 21 years old who passed a training course including a minimum of four hours of safety instruction. Applications could be denied for a previous felony conviction or a misdemeanor conviction involving a gun or explosive.

They also could be denied if within the last five years the applicant had been convicted of a violent crime or had twice been convicted of drunken driving. People dishonorably discharged from the military orhabitually intoxicated persons also would be ineligible.

Applicants who had been committed to a mental hospital or had been adjudged mentally incompetent could get concealed-weapons permits if at least five years had passed since they were released.

Rep. Vicky Riback Wilson, a Columbia Democrat, proposed a change that would prevent people convicted of domestic violence in states where such a crime is not a felony from getting permits.

"It appears this language is specifically intended to exempt people convicted of domestic assault," Wilson told Barnitz.

Rep. Wayne Crump, a Potosi Democrat and a leading advocate of concealed weapons, said Wilson's amendment went too far because allegations of domestic abuse were sometimes exaggerated. People can be convicted of domestic abuse even when no one is injured, he said.

Wilson's proposal was defeated, 71-51.

Rep. John Hickey, a St. Louis County Democrat, proposed that permit holders be required to go through training with the gun they intend to carry. If a person wanted to carry different guns to go with different outfits, they would have to qualify with each, he said.

"I have a tiny gun that is guaranteed to hit nothing," Hickey said. "I don't want people qualifying with one gun, then carrying around this small one when they have no idea how it shoots."

His proposal would require permits to identify the gun the permit holder was allowed to carry by make, model, serial number and caliber. Several members objected, saying it would force gun owners to tell the local sheriff the make and model of every gun they owned. Such a central registry is offensive to the Second Amendment, they said.

Crump and others argued that a driver's license doesn't distinguish between large and small vehicles. But Hickey countered that one must have a special license to drive a motorcycle or a large commercial truck. Cars are licensed so police know whether drivers are in a stolen car, he said.

"When we all have guns in our pockets, I'm sure we will all be trying to promote health and safety," Hickey said.

Hickey's proposal was defeated, 83-47.

One small victory for opponents came in the form of an amendment offered by Rep. Yvonne Wilson, a Kansas City Democrat, pertaining to the funding of public service announcements on safe gun storage.

The bill sets a maximum fee of $100 for a concealed weapons permit. The fees would go into a fund that the sheriff could spend for any purpose without review by the county governing board.

Yvonne Wilson's amendment would require that any balance in the sheriff's fund at the end of the year be spent on public service announcements promoting the safe storage of firearms when children are present.