By: José Niño
This week, the Ohio Senate passed Constitutional Carry legislation that will allow law-abiding Ohioans 21 and older to carry a concealed weapon.
Currently, Ohioans must undergo a background check and show proof of eight hours of training to acquire a concealed carry license. Senate Bill 215 scraps these requirements on top of a “duty to inform” requirement that obligates gun owners “promptly” to inform law enforcement officers that they’re carrying a concealed firearm during a stop.
The vote for this bill largely went down along partisan lines. All Senate Republicans, with the exception of State Sen. Jerry Cirino, voted for SB 215. All Democrats opposed the bill.
The House and Senate have passed separate but similar versions of Constitutional Carry. Now, Ohio elected officials must hammer out a final bill to send to Gov. Mike DeWine’s desk.
On December 15, 2021, a spokesman for DeWine said the governor is looking at the bill and stressed that he has “long supported the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms.”
Republicans argued that Constitutional Carry simply affirms the right to bear arms, which also applies to the concealed carry of firearms.
“It makes no sense that you can open carry, but it becomes illegal when you put a jacket on,” declared Senator Theresa Gavarone.
Ohio should pass Constitutional Carry soon. In doing so, it would become the 22nd state to pass this legislation.
Constitutional Carry is the most successful pro-Second Amendment campaign in recent memory. When Barack Obama assumed the presidency in 2009, there were only two Constitutional Carry states (Alaska and Vermont). Now in 2021, there are 21 Constitutional Carry states.
At the rate Constitutional Carry is progressing, it’s conceivable that all red states in America will have Constitutional Carry by the end of the decade.
José Niño is a freelance writer based in Austin, Texas. Contact him via Facebook, Twitter, or email him at [email protected]. Get his e-book, The 10 Myths of Gun Control, here.