Repeal of concealed handgun permit requirement advanced to final round

A bill that would remove the requirement for a concealed handgun permit in Nebraska advanced from select file March 28 after a successful cloture motion.

Current state law requires that an individual pass a background check, submit a $100 permit fee and complete a gun safety course to obtain a concealed carry permit. LB77, introduced by Gordon Sen. Tom Brewer, would waive those requirements.

Under the bill, an individual not otherwise prohibited from possessing or carrying a gun in Nebraska would be allowed to conceal carry without a permit. LB77 also would prohibit counties, cities and villages from regulating ownership, possession or transportation of a concealed handgun.

As amended on general file, LB77 would subject an individual to an additional misdemeanor charge for carrying a firearm or destructive device while committing certain “dangerous” misdemeanor crimes, including harassment, stalking, domestic violence, shoplifting and resisting arrest, among others.

An individual would be subject to a Class I misdemeanor for a first or second offense and a Class IV felony for a third or subsequent offense.

Brewer said LB77 would allow law-abiding citizens to fully exercise their constitutional right to conceal carry without being required to pay for a permit.

“This bill is trying to help Nebraskans be able to protect themselves,” Brewer said. “LB77 … would not allow felons or perpetrators of domestic violence or those with dangerous mental illness or other prohibited persons from carrying weapons.”

Lincoln Sen. Jane Raybould led the opposition to the bill during the second round of debate. The rights secured under the Second Amendment are not unlimited, she said, and LB77 would preempt existing laws that Lincoln and Omaha use to keep their communities safe.

“The [current] ordinance helps us prevent the mentally ill, substance users, gang members and known criminals from purchasing a firearm,” Raybould said.

Omaha Sen. Terrell McKinney disagreed. Speaking in support of the bill, he said Omaha’s concealed carry permit ordinance is used by the police to discriminate against Black residents and that LB77 is one way to address that problem.

Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha offered an amendment to the bill that would have maintained the permit requirement in Nebraska but would have removed permit issuance and renewal fees. He said the measure was a compromise to address the concern that permit fees are an undue burden on gun owners.

Bayard Sen. Steve Erdman spoke in support of the underlying bill and in opposition to the Cavanaugh amendment, saying it would “derail” everything LB77 seeks to accomplish.

“It’s time for us to become like all the other states that allow for constitutional carry so that … [individuals] can exercise [their] Second Amendment rights without having a permit,” Erdman said.

After four hours of debate, Brewer filed a motion to invoke cloture, which ceases debate and forces a vote on the bill and any pending amendments.

The motion was successful on a vote of 33-10. Thirty-three votes were needed.

Senators then voted down the Cavanaugh amendment 10-33 and advanced LB77 to final reading on a vote of 31-10.