Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
States Eye Allowing Concealed Carry of Guns Without a Permit
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 4 years ago on
January 27, 2021

Share

SALT LAKE CITY — Republican lawmakers in several more states want to loosen gun restrictions by allowing people to carry concealed firearms without having to get a permit, continuing a trend that gun control advocates call dangerous.

Fifteen states already allow concealed carry without a permit, and lawmakers in nine others have proposed allowing or expanding the practice. GOP governors are backing the changes in Utah and Tennessee. Another bill expanding permitless carry in Montana has passed the state House.

Most states require people to do things like get weapons training and undergo a background check to get a permit to carry a gun hidden by a jacket or inside a purse. Groups like the National Rifle Association and state lawmakers who support gun rights argue those requirements are ineffective and undermine Second Amendment protections.

The proposed changes come after gun sales hit historic levels last summer — reflected in FBI background checks — amid uncertainty and safety concerns about the coronavirus pandemic, the struggling economy and protests over racial injustice. Since then, a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol.

Against that backdrop, the efforts to loosen concealed carry requirements are a frightening trend for Shannon Watts, founder of the gun control group Moms Demand Action.

“It is dangerous to allow people to carry hidden, loaded handguns possibly without a background check or any training,” she said, adding that the annual rate of aggravated assaults with a firearm has increased 71% in Alaska since the state became the first to allow concealed carry without a permit in 2003.

The proposal in Utah would allow any U.S. citizen 21 and older to carry a concealed weapon without the now-required background check or weapons course. The bill does allow gun owners who want to carry a concealed weapon out of state to get a permit to do so after a background check and safety course.

Newly elected GOP Gov. Spencer Cox has said he supports the idea, in contrast to his predecessor and fellow Republican Gary Herbert, who vetoed a similar bill in 2013.

Supporters of the change argue that other state laws against such things as felons having guns and anyone carrying a firearm while intoxicated are enough to ensure guns are used safely.

“I have that right to protect myself, the Constitution says we have the right. Why are we putting a barrier for law-abiding citizens?” said Rep. Walt Brooks, the Republican lawmaker sponsoring the bill that got an early nod of approval from a House committee Friday. The software company president has represented rural southern Utah for about four years.

The Push in Tennessee Came After the GOP-Dominant General Assembly Relaxed the State’s Handgun Law

He pointed to a multistate study published in 2018 by the Journal of the American College of Surgeons that found loosening concealed carry permit laws didn’t lead to more homicides or violent crime. Utah does not require a permit for guns carried openly.

In Tennessee, Republican lawmakers are expected to push again to allow most adults 21 and older to carry firearms — concealed or openly — without a license that now requires a background check and training.

GOP Gov. Bill Lee backed the idea last year, though the proposal and others were put on hold amid the pandemic.

The push in Tennessee came after the GOP-dominant General Assembly relaxed the state’s handgun law in 2020 by allowing people to obtain a concealed-carry-only handgun permit that didn’t require them to demonstrate the ability to fire a weapon.

In Montana, the House recently passed a bill to allow people to carry concealed firearms without a permit in most places.

Similar bills that would allow or expand concealed carry without a permit have been introduced in Texas, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Alabama and Georgia.

In Texas, where the NRA plans to incorporate soon and where some lawmakers bring concealed handguns to work at the state Capitol, the GOP has listed the issue as one of just eight legislative priorities. The idea has failed to gain traction for years, though, and with the pandemic promising to be the predominant force in the upcoming session, its prospects are once again uncertain.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Authorities Seek Help Finding Relatives of Deceased Fresno Man

DON'T MISS

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Felecia Johnson

DON'T MISS

How in the World Did Fresno End Up on Trump’s Sanctuary Cities List?

DON'T MISS

X Marks the Spot: Bruised Musk Says His Young Son Punched Him

DON'T MISS

PBS Suing Trump Administration Over Defunding, Three Days After NPR Filed Similar Case

DON'T MISS

Loretta Swit, Emmy-winner Who Played Houlihan on Pioneering TV Series ‘M.A.S.H.,’ Has Died at 87

DON'T MISS

San Francisco 49ers Acquire Eagles Edge Rusher Bryce Huff, AP Source Says

DON'T MISS

California Lawmaker Won’t Be Charged After Citation for Suspicion of Impaired Driving

DON'T MISS

California School Awards Dinner at Disneyland Comes With Hefty Price Tag

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Release Video of Officer-Involved Shooting

UP NEXT

1 in 4 US Children Have Parents With Substance Use Disorder, Study Finds

UP NEXT

Dozens Sickened in Expanding Salmonella Outbreak Linked to Recalled Cucumbers

UP NEXT

Speaker Johnson Raises Campaign Money in Fresno

UP NEXT

Business Insider Cuts 21% of Workforce, Memo Shows

UP NEXT

Harvard Agrees to Relinquish Early Photos of Slaves, Ending a Long Legal Battle

UP NEXT

Silence on E. Coli Outbreak Highlights How Trump Team’s Changes Undermine Food Safety

UP NEXT

Trump Pardons Tax Cheat After Mother Attends $1 Million Dinner

UP NEXT

NPR Sues Trump Administration Over Executive Order to Cut Funding

UP NEXT

Justice Department Reaches Deal to Allow Boeing to Avoid Prosecution Over 737 Max Crashes

UP NEXT

Low-Income Compton Students Get $225M State-of-the-Art High School Campus

X Marks the Spot: Bruised Musk Says His Young Son Punched Him

5 hours ago

PBS Suing Trump Administration Over Defunding, Three Days After NPR Filed Similar Case

5 hours ago

Loretta Swit, Emmy-winner Who Played Houlihan on Pioneering TV Series ‘M.A.S.H.,’ Has Died at 87

6 hours ago

San Francisco 49ers Acquire Eagles Edge Rusher Bryce Huff, AP Source Says

6 hours ago

California Lawmaker Won’t Be Charged After Citation for Suspicion of Impaired Driving

6 hours ago

California School Awards Dinner at Disneyland Comes With Hefty Price Tag

8 hours ago

Fresno Police Release Video of Officer-Involved Shooting

8 hours ago

Hamas Says It Is Still Reviewing a US Proposal for a Gaza Ceasefire

8 hours ago

1 in 4 US Children Have Parents With Substance Use Disorder, Study Finds

8 hours ago

Oreo Maker Mondelez Sues Aldi, Alleging Grocery Chain Copies Its Packaging to Confuse Customers

8 hours ago

Authorities Seek Help Finding Relatives of Deceased Fresno Man

The Fresno County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office is asking for the public’s help in locating family members of a Fresno man who died last month. F...

3 hours ago

The Fresno County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office is seeking the public’s help to locate the family of Felipe Pech, 68, of Fresno, who died on April 23, 2025. (Fresno County SO)
3 hours ago

Authorities Seek Help Finding Relatives of Deceased Fresno Man

Felecia Johnson is Valley Crime Stoppers' Most Wanted Person of the Day for May 30, 2025. (Valley Crimes Stoppers)
4 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Felecia Johnson

5 hours ago

How in the World Did Fresno End Up on Trump’s Sanctuary Cities List?

5 hours ago

X Marks the Spot: Bruised Musk Says His Young Son Punched Him

5 hours ago

PBS Suing Trump Administration Over Defunding, Three Days After NPR Filed Similar Case

6 hours ago

Loretta Swit, Emmy-winner Who Played Houlihan on Pioneering TV Series ‘M.A.S.H.,’ Has Died at 87

6 hours ago

San Francisco 49ers Acquire Eagles Edge Rusher Bryce Huff, AP Source Says

6 hours ago

California Lawmaker Won’t Be Charged After Citation for Suspicion of Impaired Driving

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend