The Virginia Senate voted today to return to committee a bill that would remove from the public domain a state database of Virginians with permits to carry concealed handguns.

The move essentially kills the Senate version of the legislation for the year. A similar House bill was approved last week and will be considered by the Senate some time after Tuesday.

As initially passed from committee, Senate Bill 529 would have removed the database from public access while allowing no exceptions for political organizations and firearms advocates. People could still access the list of permit-holders in a locality by going to the circuit court clerk.

After several days of debate on proposed amendments to restrict the circuit court list, the bill's sponsor, Sen. Edd Houck, D-Spotsylvania County, said this afternoon that the question of how to balance the First and Second amendments of the U.S. Constitution should not be decided rashly on the Senate floor, but instead receive more study.

He moved the bill be sent back to the Senate Courts of Justice Committee, where it will be referred to the state Freedom of Information Advisory Council for more discussion. The Senate approved that motion with a voice vote.

The House version of the bill, sponsored by Del. Dave Nutter, R-Christiansburg, and passed by a 97-1 vote last week, exempts the state police database of permit-holders from the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, but also allows circuit court clerks to deny public access to the information, and prohibit them from releasing anything more than the names of people who are granted permits.

Both the House and Senate versions of the bill were inspired by a March incident in which a Roanoke Times editorial writer wrote a column encouraging readers to check the list and included a link to the database. The newspaper obtained the database under the Freedom of Information Act.

Publication of the list online triggered outrage from gun owners and advocates. The Roanoke Times removed the online database after receiving hundreds of complaints.

Lawmakers responded by vowing to take steps to restrict access to the information. The state police stopped distributing the information in April on the advice of Attorney General Bob McDonnell.

SB 529, which is endorsed by the state Freedom of Information Advisory Council and Virginia Press Association, would make that ban permanent.