December 2, 2017 – Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson is urging Congress to pass a law requiring states to recognize concealed-carry permits from all other states.
He joined 22 other state attorneys general, all Republicans, in signing a letter that was sent Friday to congressional leaders.
The letter urged federal representatives to pass the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act.
Under the legislation, people who can carry concealed weapons in one state would be able to legally carry in any other state.
Such reciprocity would apply regardless of differences in what states require of concealed-carry permit holders. It also would apply even if states do not require people to get permits to carry concealed guns.
Peterson said he signed on because he supports Second Amendment rights. He said the legislation “would eliminate significant obstacles to the exercise of the right to keep and bear arms for millions of Americans.”
“States should not be able to deny citizens of the United States the basic constitutional right to self-defense,” he said.
State Sen. Burke Harr of Omaha, however, said some issues should be left up to local control.
“It can be worrisome when big government steps in and tells us what to do, especially when it comes to personal safety,” he said.
Nebraska currently provides reciprocity to concealed-carry permit holders from most states but not all, according to the National Rifle Association’s Institution for Legislative Action.
The U.S. House version, which has been co-sponsored by 210 Republicans and three Democrats, cleared a key committee on Wednesday and headed to the House floor.
While it is expected to pass in the House, the bill faces a less certain fate in the Senate.
The letter argues that states that limit reciprocity leave citizens from other states in danger and with no real option for self-defense in instances of violence.
The states signing the letter along with Nebraska are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming and West Virginia.
By Martha Stoddard, Omaha World Herald
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