Florida Republican leadership responds to open carry advocates
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FLV) – Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida Republican leadership responded to advocates who wanted open carry included in the permitless carry legislation.
The permitless carry bill, HB 543, would allow Floridians to carry a concealed weapon regardless of whether they possess a concealed weapons permit. Other states have adopted a more broad approach including open carry, which permits citizens carrying firearms in plain view.
The House and Senate are considering permitless carry legislation that does not include open carry. However, in previous committees, some people believed the permitless carry legislation did not go far enough.
DeSantis expressed his support for the current proposed permitless carry bill as well as legalizing open carry in Florida.
“So I’ve been very clear, I support all of it,” DeSantis said. “Now I’m going to sign what they do. So if they do a permitless carry bill, and that gets to my desk, you know, I’m not going to veto that because it didn’t necessarily include everything I want.”
Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast, and Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples, held a joint press conference Tuesday following the governor’s State of the State Address.
Renner characterized the bill as “moving forward on the Second Amendment.”
“The bottom line, though, is after this bill passes is that people will have a constitutional right to carry for their own self defense and those of others,” Renner said. “The fact that it doesn’t include open carry still gives them the right to carry without that permission slip.”
Passidomo, when asked whether she supports open carry, deferred to the expertise of state law enforcement.
“I will support the Sheriffs of this state, who are the experts, I am not an expert. I don’t know one end of a gun from another. So I certainly want to support the experts,” Passidomo remarked.
The senate version of the permitless carry bill, SB 150, includes not only provisions related to firearm possession, but also a slew of school and community safety measures such as the creation of a new behavioral threat management process for schools across the state.
