Image source - laws101.com
State of Texas in USA is infamous for its loose gun permitting policies. So far, the law only regulated the carry of Handguns. Rifles, shotguns were allowed to be carried anywhere without having license. This situation took a turn when a bill that would let Texans carry concealed handguns without any permit passed by the state’s legislature on 24 May 2021 and headed to the desk of the governor who has promised to sign it.
Rep. Matt Schaefer, a Republican who authored the bill, which gun rights advocates call a “constitutional carry” law, had earlier called it the “strongest Second Amendment legislation in Texas history.”
The bill protects “the right of law-abiding Texans to carry a handgun as they exercise their God-given right to self-defense and the defense of their families,” Schaefer wrote on Twitter.
The Republican-dominated Legislature approved the measure, sending it to Gov. Greg Abbott, who has said he will sign it despite the objections of law enforcement groups who say it would endanger the public and police. Gun control groups also oppose the measure, noting the state’s recent history of mass shootings, including those at an El Paso Walmart, a church in Sutherland Springs, and a high school outside Houston, though each of those attacks, the assailants primarily used assault-style rifles, not handguns.
The new measures would allow anyone aged 21 or older to carry a handgun without license unless they have past criminal conviction or legal restriction on them. The bill would not prevent businesses from banning guns on their property, and federal background checks for some gun purchases would remain in place. Texas has no state restrictions on private gun sales.
Texas has allowed people to carry handguns since 1995, and has been reducing the cost and training requirements for getting a license for the last decade.