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Senate Committee Makes Change to Concealed Carry Bill

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Over two days, the Judiciary Committee considered and approved some changes to House Bill 4145. 

In its current form, the bill would remove both the permitting and safety training requirements to carry a concealed weapon in the state. It would allow 18 to 21-year-olds to obtain a provisional permit to carry concealed.

The House bill also includes increased penalties for people who unlawfully carry a gun or use a weapon to commit a crime. 

The Senate committee’s amended bill removes the $100 tax credit members of the House of Delegates included for people who go through the permitting process after the legal requirement is removed.

Wednesday, members considered an amendment presented by Senator Herb Snyder. The change would require anyone carrying concealed without a permit declare to a law enforcement officer that they had a gun when stopped or detained.

“We’ve all been contacted by a lot of people about this, but without exception the law enforcement community, the Sheriff’s Association, realizes this bill is going to pass,” Snyder told his fellow committee members. “This is the one single item repeated over and over by the contacts from law enforcement that I’ve had that law enforcement would like to have in the bill.”

The amendment failed.

An amendment to prohibit the carrying of a concealed weapon in an establishment that serves alcohol was also rejected by the committee, but the bill as amended was approved and will go to the full Senate for its consideration.

Members of the House have already approved the bill, but since Senators have made changes, the bill will have to go back to the House for another vote. If Delegates do not accept the Senate changes, the  bill will go to a conference committee, which some members of the Senate say is likely.