A small but significant gun law reform has made it out of committee in Colorado on a rare unanimous vote. In many states, in order to pass “shall issue” concealed carry laws, irrational restrictions were included in the laws to horse trade for enough votes. Colorado was one of those states. In Colorado, once you had obtained a permit to carry a gun under your coat or in a pocket, you could only renew your permit in the county where you originally applied for the permit. If you changed your residence from Moffat county in the northwest, to Baca county in the southeast, you’d have to travel back to Moffat to renew your permit – in person – or go through the entire permitting process from the beginning in your new county. The modest reform under consideration would allow you to renew in either county . . .
Douglas County is an example of how difficult it is to go through the original application process. It must be done in person between the hours of 9:00 am and 4:00 pm. And only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. The timing seems intentionally designed to force people with regular jobs to take time off from work to apply for a permit. The combined non-refundable fee for the permit is $152.50. The renewal fee is $63.
While it may seem ridiculous to have to renew your permit in person, that’s the law in Colorado at this time. HB14-1166 would allow residents to renew their permit in the county in which they reside, as well as where the permit was originally issued. In a stark contrast, South Carolina’s Governor Nikki Haley just signed into law CCW reform that allows people to renew their permit over the internet.
Both Colorado and South Carolina have bills pending to restore constitutional (permitless) carry. Colorado’s bill has been bottled up in committee, while South Carolina’s bill is still pending. Stay tuned.
©2014 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
Link to Gun Watch
“The renewal fee is $63….”
Geez, that’s an expensive lamination.
Wow, that guy is 508 feet tall?!
You read it wrong! He’s 508 inches tall.
Dang, if it weren’t for those Groucho Marx glasses, he’d be easy to spot in a crowd.
No I think it is 5 ft 8 in. 508 inches = 42.3 ft
Thanks for clearing that up.
In California, if you change your county of residence, your permit expires automatically and you have to reapply in your new county of residence. I don’t know if that means starting from scratch (with the 16 hour training requirement plus associated fees and possibly a psych exam–depending on county) or merely having to apply as a “renewal” (4 hours), but with “may issue” it is a crap shoot if you will get that new permit as “good cause” requirements vary widely from county to county.
Good for Colorado….maybe things will get better there? In Oklahoma our state agency (OSBI) just went to online, something that I think is very cool.
“This system will allow you to apply or renew your application as a 5 or 10 year SDA handgun license holder and/or register as an SDA instructor.”
https://www.ok.gov/osbi/sda/app/index.php
Oklahoma is awesome, especially now that open carry is allowed for those with a concealed carry license, including those from out of state. So now as a Texan, I can open carry in Oklahoma, despite not being able to open carry in my own state. That should change next year, though, when Greg Abbott wins the Governorship and pushes OC through the state legislature.
In other positive news, while it stings to see that our license renewal fee of $70 is higher than Colorado’s, at least our renewal rigmarole is much less onerous than Colorado’s: just go online and pay the fee. No renewal class, proficiency, fingerprints or anything in person is required. You do have to read the form of updated laws and click to acknowledge awareness of whatever the new laws at that point are, but that’s it.
MY favorite part of Oklahoma’s licensing laws – if you are from a state with permitless carry – eg. Arizona, Alaska, etc. you can concealed carry in OK without a permit as long as you can show you are a resident of one of those states. It’s real handy for military stationed in OK.
Partly right. I’m in Texas near OK and I checked the laws. It seems you can open carry in OK if you are permitted in your home state to open carry.
Originally from Michigan, now residing in Ohio…..I would still argue for permitLESS open carry were I you.
good god. I almost moved to CO. I had always assumed it was as gun friendly as AZ. the more I learn about CO, the more I appreciate the beautiful and free state of Arizona!
Colorado was quite gun friendly until the 2012 elections. Let’s hope and work for it to be that way again soon.
Why would anyone want to renew a license giving you permission to do something that is already constitutionally protected?
blah, blah, blah…
I’m beginning to wonder why you’re here
Beginning?
Whether the law is right or wrong, the grey bar hotel clashes with my fashion sense.
Facepalm
Dean, you got me all excited there. Checked my on-line sources and found no indication that the Gov. has actually signed S308 at this moment, maybe tomorrow? As you noted elsewhere, she has stated her intention to sign it once it comes to her desk.
Also would like to note that we have CWPs (vice CHL or CCW or ???) here in SC (Concealed Weapons Permit) although, despite the name, only refers specifically to carrying a pistol and SLED refers to the permit as a CWP permit.
The Gov. has announced a signing ceremony open to the public for Monday in Columbia, SC on her Facebook page. AFAIK that is still on.
In my defense, I don’t do Facebook.
In Russia, Facebook does you.
In Soviet America too!
Thus the reason for my position.
According to WIS-TV in Columbia, SC: “Haley announed on her Facebook page the signing ceremony will take place Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. on the first floor lobby of the State House.” It will likely take the local newspaper here in Charleston, the “Puke and Choke”, several days to make note of it, considering their consistent “blood will run in the streets” editorials.
I doubt Constitutional Carry will come to Colorado anytime soon. Not until the legislature becomes less anti-rights anyway (with enough votes to override a gubernatorial veto), or until Chickenfucker is ousted and someone is elected that’s less inclined to violate the rights of his (or her!) fellow Coloradans.
South Carolina is looking like a much better prospect. I wonder when its next door neighbor to the north (my state!) will get a clue (and FINALLY dump the stupid goddamn pistol permitting scheme already!).
Chickenfucker or Hickeypooper is up for re-election this year… and is in trouble in the polls.
It’s entirely possible that by this time next year this bullshit will be behind us.
FWIW, I chatted briefly with some of the NRA-ILA guys at the Great American Outdoor Show a few days ago. They didn’t think the SC constitutional carry law has any chance to pass this session, although they certainly didn’t rule it out for future legislative sessions.
I guess it’s one step at a time.
Sounds like an increasingly rabidly, anti-firearms Colorado Democrat Party is grasping at whatever minor administrative tweaks here and there they can, such that they can then stand before the electorate this year and declare themselves overall in favor of “common sense gun reform.” After all, here are examples expanding rights, here are some where freedoms must modestly modified in the interest of public safety. It’s all part of a balanced blend of good government and respect for the Second Amendment. Right.
Blah blah blah, lies lies lies. It’s just window dressing to fool the naïve into thinking the gun grabbers inside are not just holding their collective breath, trying to get through this election so they can get on with their confiscation.
Hmmm. In El Paso County, Colorado here, and just renewed my CCW by mail.
You sure about that? Acc’d to the county Sheriff’s web page, even a renewal in EPC requires an appointment of “10-30” minutes, a new photo, signature, and possibly new fingerprints. It is against state law to renew the permit except in person. Source: http://shr.elpasoco.com/Support+Services+Bureau/Concealed+Handgun+Permit.htm
100% positive. I called EPCSO a few months beforehand to see if i needed an appt. I was advised that for renewals, it was not necessary. I mailed in the renewal app and fees, and I received my new permit in the mail from EPCSO sent right to my door. Perhaps it is different depending on what county you are in.
Geez, I would have thought too that CO was much more CCW permit friendly. Here in Alabama, once you get the permit in person, which takes all of 20 minutes any day of the week and $20, you get a card every year about a month before the renewal date reminding you to renew AND you can renew it by mail. The only reason to go down to the Sheriff’s Dept. is if you want a new photo. I was contemplating a move to CO for work though now I may reconsider. I always carry concealed.
I wish every process was as easy as possible for law abiding citizens to have the legal right to carry a firearm. Small loopholes like having to re-register in your “home county” just make the processes harder and keeps guns out of the hands of law abiding citizens.
Comments are closed.