Telegraph Staff Writer
STARKE—Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a permitless carry bill sponsored by local legislators Bobby Payne and Chuck Brannan.
Brannan represents Bradford and Union counties in Florida’s House of Representatives. Payne represents southern Clay County, including Keystone Heights.
The new law allows most citizens to carry a concealed weapon after June 30 without a permit, along with the training and the $97 fee the current permit requires.
Last week the House voted down eight amendments to the House version of the bill.
Democrats offered amendments to HB 543 that would have created sales tax exemptions for the sale of firearm safes, lockboxes or trigger locks; limited the number of guns a person could carry at a time to one and capped the bullets they could possess to 16; created a community violence task force; required training for individuals carrying concealed weapons; mandated that all gun sales go through licensed gun dealers and allowed people to take weapons into Florida’s Capitol.
In addition to allowing permitless carry, the new law also expands the state’s current school guardian program to private schools and requires the Office of Safe Schools to create a standard behavioral threat assessment process.
It also creates the Florida Safe Schools Canine Program, allowing firearms detection dogs in participating schools.
