Congress advanced two bills this week aimed at expanding the rights of law-aiding gun owners.
One of them, according to a legislative expert from the National Rifle Association, would mark the “most monumental” win for Second Amendment rights in more than 20 years, if signed into law.
H.R. 38, the Constitutional Concealed Cary Reciprocity Act, and H.R. 2184, the Firearm Due Process Protection Act, were debated and passed out of committee on Tuesday. This was the first step before the bills could be considered by the full House of Representatives and ultimately the Senate. H.R. 38, which seeks to implement nationwide reciprocity for concealed carry permits, would allow law-abiding gun owners with a permit in one state to carry in another state that also permits concealed carry but may not have reciprocity.
“The right of self-defense shouldn’t end simply because you cross the state line,” said John Commerford, executive director of the NRA’s congressional lobbying arm. “Passage of H.R. 38 — concealed carry reciprocity — would be the most monumental win for gun rights in Congress since 2005, when the Protection of Lawful Commerce and Arms Act was passed.”
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While more than half of U.S. states have reciprocity laws, H.R. 38 would allow people with concealed carry permits in gun-friendly states to carry concealed firearms in places like Los Angeles and Chicago — cities in states that do not have reciprocity laws but do allow concealed carry.
Under current law, if a lawful gun owner from Pennsylvania were to cross the Delaware River into New Jersey with a concealed weapon, they could face “at least” a three-year mandatory prison sentence, according to Commerford.
And while Second Amendment advocates like Commerford say they are hopeful about the potential for federal-level reciprocity for concealed carry, he and others like him fear it will add to the nation’s ongoing gun violence crisis.
“This legislation is a dramatic infringement on states’ rights and would be disastrous for gun crime and law enforcement safety in our country,” said Emma Brown, executive director at the gun control advocacy group Giffords. “Violent crime rises when state concealed carry standards are weakened, and this would weaken the standard in every single state. It would also endanger police and make their jobs harder.”
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The second bill advanced this week on Capitol Hill was H.R. 2184. It aims to enhance the rights of people wanting to purchase a firearm who may be denied as the result of errors in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
If a buyer appeals a judgment denying their right to purchase a firearm on the grounds that there was an error, H.R. 2184 would require federal officials to make a determination on their appeal within 60 days. If an answer is not provided within the two-month timeline, gun owners can then seek a court judgement to obtain one.
“If your name is John Smith and you fill out a NICS check on Black Friday at Cabela’s to buy a firearm, you’re going to be in for a wait, and sometimes you’re going to be in for clerical errors that could restrict that [purchase],” Commerford said. “With a pro-gun House, a pro-gun Senate, and a pro-gun president in the White House, now is the time to put the foot on the gas and try to restore Second Amendment rights of America’s gun owners.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.
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