By Paul Waldmiller
Did you know that a new Florida House bill has been introduced to once again propose Constitutional, open carry of firearms?
Bill number 1619 was filed by Rep. Mike Beltran, R-Riverview on the very first day of the 2024 legislative session.
The bill if passed by both the Florida House and Senate and also signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis, would allow Floridians to openly carry their firearms. Currently, any Florida resident who is not a convicted felon may carry a concealed weapon without a permit.
In addition, bill 1619 makes further changes to current Florida statute by proposing Florida lawmakers being allowed to carry concealed guns to legislative meetings and in the state Capitol complex.
Both Florida House President, Paul Renner (R) and, Senate President, Kathleen Passidomo (R) in the past have opposed changes in firearms law. They both openly condemned concealed carry laws but because Governor DeSantis in the last legislative session placed political pressure on them, they agreed to allow the bills to pass. This year, DeSantis until very recently had been out of the state campaigning for President, and may not be willing to push allowing Constitutional carry bills to pass.
The bill may be viewed at the Florida Senate website, https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2024/1619