Gun rights could see ‘most monumental’ win in Congress since 2005, expert says

Congress advanced two bills this week aimed at expanding the rights of law-aiding gun owners.

One of them, according to a legislative expert from the National Rifle Association, would mark the “most monumental” win for Second Amendment rights in more than 20 years, if signed into law.

H.R. 38, the Constitutional Concealed Cary Reciprocity Act, and H.R. 2184, the Firearm Due Process Protection Act, were debated and passed out of committee on Tuesday. This was the first step before the bills could be considered by the full House of Representatives and ultimately the Senate. H.R. 38, which seeks to implement nationwide reciprocity for concealed carry permits, would allow law-abiding gun owners with a permit in one state to carry in another state that also permits concealed carry but may not have reciprocity.

“The right of self-defense shouldn’t end simply because you cross the state line,” said John Commerford, executive director of the NRA’s congressional lobbying arm. “Passage of H.R. 38 — concealed carry reciprocity — would be the most monumental win for gun rights in Congress since 2005, when the Protection of Lawful Commerce and Arms Act was passed.”

While more than half of U.S. states have reciprocity laws, H.R. 38 would allow people with concealed carry permits in gun-friendly states to carry concealed firearms in places like Los Angeles and Chicago — cities in states that do not have reciprocity laws but do allow concealed carry.

Under current law, if a lawful gun owner from Pennsylvania were to cross the Delaware River into New Jersey with a concealed weapon, they could face “at least” a three-year mandatory prison sentence, according to Commerford.