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ON JULY 1ST FLORIDA JOINS 25 OTHER STATES IN THE COUNTRY AS “PERMITLESS CONCEALED CARRY” TAKES EFFECT FOR LAW ABIDING CITIZENS!! WHAT DOES IT TRULY MEAN…

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This past legislative session myself and the overwhelming majority of Sheriffs in the State of Florida, proudly worked with our legislators in support of the Constitutional Carry Bill or “Permitless Concealed Carry” as it is often referred to. The bill was championed by our Governor, Senate President, and Speaker of the House, and was subsequently signed into law by Governor DeSantis on April 3rd, 2023, making Florida the 26th state to allow Permitless Concealed Carry. Since the new law takes effect on July 1st of this year, I wanted to share with our citizens what the new law actually does, while also dispelling some rumors and myths about what it doesn’t do.

While the new law without question reaffirms that you don’t need a permission slip from the government to exercise your constitutional rights, what it doesn’t do is allow for open carry or change in any way who can carry or possess a firearm and where they can carry it!! While everyone knows that I have always stood in strong support of “Open Carry” and always will, this new law does not authorize citizens to open carry, but only to no longer need a permit to conceal carry!! The new law simply allows lawful gun owners in the state of Florida to carry concealed, without needing a Concealed Carry Permit and without paying a fee.

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The new law doesn’t change the age of who can purchase a firearm, the requirements to legally purchase a firearm, or allow firearms to be carried, for example, in bars, airports, courthouses, meetings of government bodies, or on school grounds. So essentially, all of the places that were prohibited before July 1st, are still prohibited after July 1st. It also doesn’t allow a convicted felon or anyone who has been committed for mental illness or substance abuse to possess a firearm, or any other person prohibited by Florida State Statute 790.06 or Federal Law.

While this is a great piece of legislation for the citizens of the state of Florida, I still encourage our citizens who travel outside the state to obtain a Concealed Carry Permit, as not all states recognize “Permitless Concealed Carry” and therefore, a Concealed Carry Permit will be valuable through reciprocity for each state you may travel to. I also strongly encourage everyone who carries a firearm to please take our Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, “Self Defense Through Tactical Shooting Course” that is an extremely comprehensive 8 hour class covering everything from safety, to tactical self defense, to legal considerations, for those using a firearm to protect themselves!! For more information on the course and to register, please visit our website at brevardsheriff.com or contact our Career Development Unit at (321) 264-5201.

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