In the United States, each state has its laws surrounding whether it is legal to carry weapons. In some states, open carry is permitted, which means that a firearm can be carried out in the open if the individual meets all requirements of the state. In other states, concealed carry is allowed. This means that a person can carry a legal weapon in their vehicle or on themselves, but it must be hidden from sight.
While most people associated concealed carry with guns, other weapons are included in these laws. In Florida, pepper spray canisters that are over two ounces can only be carried by a person with a concealed weapons permit.
All fifty states have laws in place that allow citizens to carry concealed weapons. However, some states will not issue permits or make it extremely difficult to acquire a permit. In 2018, over 17 million permits were issued throughout the nation. Since all states have laws in place, you can break down the permitting policies found throughout the nation. Some definitions that are helpful in this article are:
- Shall-Issue to Residents Only: States will issue any state resident a concealed carry permit if they meet all requirements.
- Shall-Issue to Residents and Non-Residents: States will issue any state resident or non-resident a concealed carry permit if they meet all requirements.
- May Issue to Residents Only: States have the authority to make a judgment on whether or not they want to issue a concealed carry permit to a state resident even if all requirements are met.
- May Issue to Residents and Non-Residents: States have the authority to judge whether they want to issue a concealed carry permit to state residents and non-residents even if all requirements are met.
- Constitutional Carry and Shall Issue to Residents Only: States have some form of Constitutional Carry law that allows residents to carry concealed weapons without a permit. However, they will also issue any resident a concealed carry permit if they meet all requirements.
- Constitutional Carry and Shall Issue to Residents and Non-Residents: States have some form of Constitutional Carry law that allows residents to carry concealed weapons without a permit. However, they will also issue any state residents and non-residents a concealed carry permit if all requirements are met.
Constitutional Carry States
In some states, concealed carry is in the form of Constitutional Carry. Anyone who can legally carry a weapon may do so without a permit. The Constitutional Carry states are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
Shall-Issue States
Other states have shall-issue laws. This means that a license is required to carry a concealed handgun. However, the permitted carrier does not have to demonstrate "good cause" for carrying the weapon. The states that are shall-issue states with no discretion are Florida, Louisiana, Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.
Fourteen additional states are shall-issue states with limited discretion. These are Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, and Virginia.
May Issue States
Other states have may-issue laws. This is when a permit is required, and local authorities help determine whether permits are given. These states are California (residents only), Connecticut, Delaware (residents only), Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island.
In some states, there are no-issue laws. This means that most private citizens are not allowed to carry concealed handguns. In California, this is the case in 12 counties. In other areas, while these laws are not technically on the books, they are in practice. The states that have these laws in practice are Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York.
Concealed Carry Reciprocity
Concealed carry reciprocity means that one's concealed carry permit or license is valid beyond the issuing state's borders. Reciprocity varies from state to state, and individuals carrying must follow the state's laws in which they are carrying. For example, Alabama honors all out-of-state concealed carry permits. Meaning that if an individual has a concealed carry permit from Arkansas, they can legally carry a firearm in Alabama.
Several states do not honor any out-of-state concealed carry permits or non-resident permits. For example, Colorado does not honor any out-of-state non-resident permits. This means that for Colorado to honor an out-of-state permit, it must be a resident permit from a state that honors Colorado's permits, and the person must be at least 21. A 21-year-old with a resident permit from Florida would be honored in Colorado.
The states that do not honor any other state's concealed carry permits are California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana (doesnot honor from Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island), New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Rhode Island. The table below has each state's law regarding concealed carry.
