On January 9, 2025, Senator John Cornyn (R TX) and Senator John Kennedy (R LA) introduced a national reciprocity bill. The bill requires all states to allow people who may legally carry concealed handguns in their state of residence to carry concealed handguns in other states. A picture ID would be required to verify the residency of the person who is carrying a concealed handgun. From the press release of Senator Kennedy:
This legislation would:
- Allow individuals with concealed carry privileges in their home states to exercise those rights in any other state that has concealed carry laws.
- Treat state-issued concealed carry permits like drivers’ licenses, allowing an individual to use his or her home-state license to drive in another state while abiding by the speed limit of whatever state that person is in.
The official text of S65 has not, as of this writing, been published in the Congressional record. Senator Grassley (R Iowa) links to a copy of the proposed text. This correspondent will assume the text is accurate for the purposes of this analysis.
There are 43 sponsors and co-sponsors of the proposed bill. It is a good start. The bill may need to overcome a filibuster. 60 votes are needed to overcome a filibuster. Of the 100 senators, 58 come from states with Constitutional Carry. The other 32 states have some form of shall issue carry. Only 20 senators come from states that are actively resisting the Supreme Court to deny people the right to carry outside the home. There is a reasonable possibility for the bill to overcome a filibuster.
The bill provides two cases where individuals must be allowed to carry concealed handguns in states where they do not reside. The two cases are:
- If the individual is carrying a government-issued photographic ID and has a license or permit to carry from their state of residence
- If the individual is carrying a government-issued photographic ID and is not prohibited from carrying a concealed firearm in the state in which the individual resides, otherwise than in paragraph 1.
The wording appears a bit awkward. The two cases appear to be for shall-issue states and permitless carry states. Individuals must not be prohibited from carrying or possessing or receiving firearms in interstate commerce. The handgun must have Individuals must carry government-issued photographic identification. Individuals are required to comply with the restrictions on concealed carry in the state they are traveling in, but only to the least restrictive standard of residents of the state who are issued a license or permit to carry.
If passed, the economic and structural restrictions that apply to shall-issue licenses in the most restrictive states, such as Hawaii and New York, would result in visitors from other states being able to carry concealed much more easily than residents of those states. This is very close to the same carry authority provided to retired and active duty police officers by LEOSA, passed in 2004.
LEOSA has already been tested in the courts and found to be constitutional and enforceable. It has been expanded over the years.
S65 only applies to concealed carry of handguns, similar to the restrictions in LEOSA. Neither bill applies to open carry.
While S65 only mentions “states,” it applies to all territories of the United States. The LEOSA statute also uses the word “state” or “states” and applies to all U.S. States and territories.
The bill is in its early stages. Amendments to bills are common during the legislative process.
About Dean Weingarten:
Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of Constitutional Carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.
How about if you can legally own a firearm, you’re good to go. No more identifying your life in another database as a gun owner.
Those two limp dks can take that bs and shove it, especially Cronyn after selling out with the Biden gun bill. We don’t need nor will we ask for permits from the state, as we have nationwide constitutional carry per the second. Congress has no authority to require that we get state or federal permission to carry. Someone with intestinal fortitude and some patriotism in congress … if there is but one, stand up and remind your fellow corrupt critters of this fact.
Does following carry laws of the state you are visiting apply to handgun selection? I don’t see anything on this above – but think I’ve read elsewhere that one will be allowed to carry whatever they can carry in state of residence. Thus I would be able to carry my pistol with standard size magazines (17 rounds) in any state including states where both pistol and magazine would be illegal. I realize they won’t over-ride suppressor restrictions in those crazy states which ban them, but not an issue as I don’t carry a suppressed firearm. Hoping for suppressors to be… Read more »
I don’t like that Gun Control Advocate John Cornyn the traitor Democrat Backer who activily backed the Democrat Safer Communities Act is involved. The bill appears weak like Cornyn. Since anarchist governors and legislatures the likes of New York Governor Kathy Hochel, California Gavin Newsom, New Jersey Phil Murphy, etc. have developed a habit of actively and unlawfully circumventing the U.S. Supreme Court with unconstiutional infringement laws that take 10-14 years to strike down, there has been continued talk of a need to add to this bill the stripping away of Government Official Qualified Immunity (the unconstitutional protection invented by… Read more »
If this legislation ever becomes law, it will surely breach the anti-gun fortress. Schumer and some others will need to be heavily medicated.
This bill will be very interesting to watch.