NC House votes to repeal handgun purchase permits, but one bill sponsor votes no

A proposal to repeal North Carolina’s permit law for buying handguns, which was approved by the Senate last week, passed the House on Wednesday as well.

The repeal plans are in two different pieces of legislation, so the Republican-controlled House and Senate would need to negotiate a final version to be sent to Gov. Roy Cooper. And it’s not yet clear that the legislation has enough votes to bypass the Democratic governor, who has vetoed a similar plan before.

House Bill 50, which would remove from state law a requirement that anyone buying a handgun first obtain a permit from their local sheriff’s office, passed the House in a 67-48 party line vote, with one Democrat and four Republicans not present.

Rep. Michael Wray, a Halifax County Democrat who was the only member of his party to sign onto the bill as a sponsor, ultimately voted against it. After the vote, Wray told reporters he had spoken to a sheriff in his district, who urged him not to vote for the repeal.

The same repeal, introduced in the Senate, was passed last Thursday as part of a package of gun rights legislation that includes an expansion of concealed carry to places of worship that also serve as schools, or have attached schools, and a two-year statewide initiative to raise awareness of safe firearm storage. That vote was also purely along party lines.

Rep. Allen Chesser, a Nash County Republican and primary sponsor of the bill, said before the vote that the current permit requirement was redundant, and imposed an arbitrary restriction on the constitutional rights of North Carolinians, echoing arguments other Republicans have made recently.

“It ensures Second Amendment rights are not infringed by a subjective process,” Chesser said of the bill. “It will prevent undue delays for lawful purchases of firearms.”

Extensive debate on House floor

Democrats who opposed the bill said they were concerned that doing away with the permit system would create a dangerous loophole for private sales, which are not covered by federal background checks.

Rep. Pricey Harrison, a Guilford County Democrat, said she was a proud gun owner but felt the bill was the wrong step to take, especially in light of an “explosion” in gun deaths and mass shootings. She said she disagreed with Republicans who said the permit law wouldn’t lead to more gun violence.

“It’s going to increase folks who have access to guns who shouldn’t have them,” Harrison said.

Democratic Rep. Amber Baker, of Forsyth County, also said she was wary of getting rid of an existing regulation at a time when gun violence has been plaguing Winston-Salem, where she lives. As of last week, WXII reported, the city had recorded 11 homicides since the start of the year, compared to eight during the same period in 2022.

Republicans touted the North Carolina Sheriff’s Association’s support for repealing the permit requirement.

Some individual sheriffs have voiced different opinions, but GOP Rep. Keith Kidwell of Beaufort County said it was notable that the association had determined the permitting process was no longer necessary.

He also expressed skepticism of the claim by some Democrats that getting rid of the permit system would put more guns in the hands of criminals.

“In fact, most criminals acquire their guns by breaking into cars and homes, and stealing them,” Kidwell said. “So, unless you’re going to have them, before they can steal the gun out of your car, fill out a pistol purchase permit ... this law doesn’t do any good.”

Experts have said that more people owning guns is leading to greater numbers of them being stolen, especially from vehicles, The News & Observer previously reported.

Kidwell also said he found it strange that opponents of the bill mostly favored tougher restrictions on people exercising their constitutional right to own a gun, but not other rights.

“I don’t have to get a background check to get a newspaper; I don’t have to get a background check to go vote; I don’t have to get a background check to keep troops from being housed in my home. But I have to get one for this,” Kidwell said. “One of the most sacred rights we have — in fact, a lot of people have died for — is the right to vote. And I know there’s a lot of people on this floor, that are against having ID to do that.”

Democratic Rep. Marcia Morey of Durham County, speaking after Kidwell, said that the sheriff in her county had denied 133 permits in 2022, and that she was glad the sheriff’s office had that authority, because they had “good cause” and “good reason” to do so.

“This is an extra layer of protection,” Morey said. “We are not talking about denying people the right to eventually get a gun; we’re saying you do need to go through a permit process.”

“Newspapers don’t kill, but guns do,” she added.

Repeal bill provokes different reactions

Gun safety advocates have criticized lawmakers for moving forward with trying to repeal the permit law.

In a statement after Wednesday’s vote, Becky Ceartas, the executive director of North Carolinians Against Gun Violence, said that instead of removing the permitting process, the system needs to be strengthened with more funding to ensure that sheriffs can process permit applications quickly.

“Permit to Purchase laws are one of the most effective policies at preventing gun violence,” Ceartas said in a statement. “Why would we repeal a law that has been proven to save lives when gun violence is already at an all time high in NC?”

Grass Roots North Carolina, a key supporter of the permit repeal, criticized opponents of the bill for claiming that the permitting system was helping keep guns out of the hands of criminals and others who shouldn’t have them.

In a press release ahead of the vote Wednesday, the organization said that argument rested on the “ludicrous notion” that criminals committing gun violence were “inexplicably obeying the purchase permit law, the permits for which are untraceable slips of paper.”

“Given that most North Carolinians don’t even know a purchase permit is required for a private transfer, it’s a safe bet that when gang members sell each other firearms, no purchase permits are used,” the organization said.

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