Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed legislation Tuesday allowing residents to carry handguns in public without a license or background check.
Kemp, a Republican, backed a similar proposal while running for governor in 2018, and expanding gun rights was a key part of his platform. He urged lawmakers to take up the issue at a news conference earlier this year.
“(This law) ensures that law-abiding Georgians, including our daughters and also your family, can protect themselves without having to seek permission from your state government,” Kemp said Tuesday before signing the law. “This is an issue I championed in 2018 along with so many of the members who are behind us today. And by working together, we got it across the finish line.”
The law allows a “lawful gun bearer” to carry a concealed handgun where firearms are allowed without a state license. A “lawful gun bearer” is anyone who is authorized to purchase a firearm.
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Under current law, Georgians must obtain a permit to carry a loaded handgun outside of their homes, businesses or cars. To do this, you must complete an application, pay a fee, provide fingerprints and undergo a background check.
Long guns can already be carried in many places without a permit. Background checks are still required when purchasing a handgun from a store or dealer.
Kemp will likely spend much of his campaign time campaigning for legislation leading to his May 24 primary against former Senator David Perdue. Kemp and supporters of the legislation have argued that the law increases personal security and protects Second Amendment rights.
Although Kemp announced his support for this type of legislation during the 2018 gubernatorial campaign, Perdue has attempted to claim credit for urging Kemp and GOP lawmakers to address the issue.
“A lot of things that they accomplished in that session happened after I got in the race,” Perdue told Fox News last week. “The constitutional carry came to nothing. I got in and said we should have a constitutional carry. Next thing I know, they’re working on a bill to do that.”
A January poll by the Atlanta Journal Constitution found that 44% of state Republicans supported allowing people to carry concealed handguns in public without a license. Overall, 70% of registered Georgian voters opposed such a measure.
Democrats and gun safety advocates have said the license application process has resulted in licenses being denied to thousands of people who are not allowed to own guns, including convicted felons and people hospitalized for mental health problems or for addiction have been treated in recent years. A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that relaxed licensing requirements resulted in a 13% to 15% increase in violent crime over 10 years.
“Kemp knows that states that are criminal are seeing increases in gun violence,” tweeted Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. “He knows that more than 5,200 permits were denied in a single year, for example because of felony convictions or domestic violence. He knows the danger. Kemp just doesn’t care.”
Abrams and other opponents have branded the law “criminal wear,” a play on the term that advocates for it, “constitutional wear.”
The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported in January that law enforcement officials were divided on the issue.
In addition to the gun bill signed Tuesday, Kemp is likely to announce other conservative legislation that lawmakers will pass in the next few weeks, including laws restricting how teachers talk about race in class and potentially allowing the state athletic federation to ban transgender Ban athletes from participating in women’s sports and give the state investigation office to investigate allegations of voter fraud.
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Adam Brewster
