(Headline USA) Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill on Monday that will allow residents to carry concealed weapons without a permit.
The law, known as a “constitutional carry” law, permits citizens to bear hidden firearms on their persons without having to go through a lengthy permitting process. They must, however, still inform police that they are carrying a weapon if asked.
“This is a great moment for Ohio and for those who wish to more fully exercise their Constitutional right to keep and bear arms,” Dean Rieck, Executive Director of Buckeye Firearms Association, said in a statement.
“Gov. DeWine made a campaign promise to Buckeye Firearms Association and to Ohio’s 4 million gun owners that he would sign a Constitutional Carry bill if it was put on his desk. And he has fulfilled his promise,” Rieck added.
However, law enforcement agencies in the state are not supportive of the move.
“[The ‘constitutional carry’ law] isn’t putting public safety first, and it’s not putting public safety officers first,” Ohio Fraternal Order of Police President Gary Wolske wrote in a December 2021 op-ed criticizing the bill.
DeWine has a mixed record on gun laws. He previously signed a “Stand Your Ground” bill in January, removing the state’s requirement for a person to retreat before shooting someone in self-defense. But before that he supported a number of gun control reforms.
Now, however, DeWine is up for reelection and faces competition from several tough candidates who are seen as more pro-2nd Amendment than he is.
When asked if this was one of the motivations behind the bill, Ohio Republicans denied that they voted for the law for political reasons.
“The Legislature does what it deems good public policy, so that’s our focus,” Ohio House Speaker Bob Cupp told the Statehouse News Bureau.
Several other Republican states allow concealed carry without permits, including Arkansas, Iowa, Montana, Tennessee, Texas, and Utah.
