Took him long enough. He likely had his finger in the air and it took him this long to figure it out which way the wind was blowing.
Buckeye Firearms Association (BFA) summarized the new law in layman’s terms:
- Obtaining a concealed handgun license will become optional, so if you are able to legally carry a concealed handgun with a license, you will also be able to carry without a license. The same rights and responsibilities apply in either case.
- You will no longer have the duty to “promptly” notify every law enforcement officer during an official stop. Instead, you must disclose that you are carrying a concealed handgun only when an officer asks, unless you have already notified another officer.
- If you choose to obtain a concealed handgun license, you will no longer be required to carry the license on your person.
DeWine signs bill allowing ‘constitutional carry’ in Ohio.
Ohioans will be able to carry concealed handguns without a permit, known as “constitutional carry.”
Gov. Mike DeWine on Monday signed into law Senate Bill 215, which passed the General Assembly on March 2 and was hailed by supporters as a historic Second Amendment victory.
The bill allows anyone at least 21 who is legally allowed to have a gun be able to carry a concealed handgun without a permit. It also removes the requirement for eight hours of gun safety training and potentially without a pre-purchase background check.
Also, if a driver is stopped by police, that person would not longer be required to inform officers of the concealed weapon unless specifically asked.
Statehouse Democrats had called on DeWine to veto the bill.
Other opponents of the bill included the Ohio Fraternal Order of Police, and Nan Whaley, a Democratic candidate for governor who was mayor of Dayton during the city’s deadliest mass shooting in August 2019 when a gunman killed nine and injured 37 people in the city’s historic Oregon District.
Dion Green, a survivor of the mass shooting whose father, Derek Fudge of Springfield was shot and killed, also called on the governor to veto the bill.
State Sen. Niraj Antani, R-Miamisburg, celebrated the bill’s passage on March 2: “I am proud that we passed Senate Bill 215, which will advance Second Amendment rights in Ohio by enacting constitutional carry. I was honored to vote for and co-sponsor the bill.”