A measure that allows gun owners to carry a concealed pistols without permits is moving through the statehouse...even after one version of it died.
The legislation just passed the state House of Representatives. It now moves to the State Senate where lawmakers tabled a similar measure.
On the last day each house can send bills to their respective chambers, the South Dakota Senate waited to see the outcome of a House vote before considering a bill almost identical.
The legislation removes the requirement of a permit to carry a concealed pistol.
State Representative Lynne DiSanto sponsors the bill. She says lawful gun owners are allowed to open carry, but they immediately become criminals by wearing a coat…
“Let’s stop making the law abiding people criminals. By the simple act of placing a jacket on, possibly guilty of a class one misdemeanor, one year in jail, and a $2,000 fine for even inadvertently concealing your weapon," DiSanto says. "You could be driving in your car with your gun in your seat next to you and your coat falls off the back of the seat onto your gun and you are now a criminal if you do not have a permit.”
DiSanto says the bill puts South Dakota in line with 13 other states in that allow concealed carry without a permit.
State Representative Craig Tieszen is a former Rapid City police chief. He says getting a permit is a minimal burden.
“Ten dollars every five years. Ten minutes to fill out a form. Pretty minimal," Tieszen says. "I personally have yet to meet the person who has been inconvenienced seriously, mistreated, as a result of obtaining a legal concealed weapons permit. What do we get? Well, we get a level of protection from people who should not carry concealed. Law enforcement needs that level of protection.”
House Bill 1072 passed the full House by one vote. It now moves to the Senate.
Governor Dennis Daugaard says he’s satisfied with current concealed carry laws.