20 States Now Have Constitutional Carry
BY Herschel Smith
3 years, 6 months ago
Tennessee joined 19 other states that allow constitutional carry when Gov. Bill Lee signed Senate Bill 765/House Bill 786 into law earlier this month. The measure takes effect July 1, applies to law-abiding citizens 20 and older, and a provision includes those serving in the military who are 18 to 20 years of age.
“This bill is a great step forward in the advancement of self-defense rights and Second Amendment freedoms for all Tennessee gun owners,” said NRA-ILA Executive Director Jason Ouimet. “It simply means law-abiding Tennessean’s no longer have to pay a tax to exercise the right of self-protection.”
The number of states joining those with constitutional carry has grown quickly in 2021. On Feb. 18 Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte signed House Bill 102 into law, allowing constitutional carry for state residents. Iowa became the 19th state to enroll on April 2. The measures become effective June 1 and July 1, respectively.
The other 17 states with constitutional carry laws are Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah (effective May 5), Vermont, West Virginia and Wyoming.
The merits of similar or nearly identical measures are currently being considered by a number of other state legislatures. One passed muster in a Louisiana Senate committee and is headed for debate on the body’s main floor. Texas lawmakers are also considering a permitless carry provision and South Carolina’s House recently approved a constitutional carry measure. Others are in the works across the nation.
What? And there isn’t blood running in the streets as the Karen’s predicted?
On April 30, 2021 at 11:28 am, Ron W said:
We still don’t have true CONSTITUTIONAL Carry in Tennessee, but just a legal privilege to carry a handgun as an EXEMPTION to the longtime law against “carrying a weapon for the purpose of going armed”–if that makes sense! But in the Tennessee Constitution we have a DECLARED RIGHT for keeping and bearing (carrying) arms for our self defense. (Article I, Section 26 of DECLARED RIGHTS). The law should simply say “PURSUANT to the declared right in Article I, Section 26, a Tennessee citizen has the right to acquire, keep and carry any legally owned weapon. So as it is, our DECLARED RIGHT is NOT recognized and it is still UNLAWFULLY illegal to carry a rifle or shotgun for self defense. I have instructed my elected EMPLOYEES that this MUST be done according to their OATH and DUTY to OBEY the WORDS to which they took an oath!!
On May 2, 2021 at 7:59 pm, Michael (from Utah) said:
No blood here in the streets of Utah, Hershel.
That doesn’t stop the lefties in the media howling about the upcoming change in the law, though.
On May 8, 2021 at 6:29 pm, Fred said:
TN does NOT have Constitutional Carry. It has a partial exception to the permit process. The locations where you can carry without a permit are VERY limited. This law will get people thrown in jail for thinking that they have the ‘right’ to carry. Also, the law bans long guns.