Concealed Carry is back  by Bo Rabarsky

Will Republicans deliver for gun owners or kick the can down the road once again!

In March of 2017, the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act (CCRA) was first introduced by North Carolina Congressman Richard Hudson in the 115th Congress. It passed the lower house in December 2017 after being combined with the fix NICS background check improvement bill, but stalled in the Senate without receiving a formal floor vote.

In January 2021, the 117th Congress, CCRA was reintroduced with co-sponsor support, but remained in committee and never went any further.

In January 2023, with the 118th Congress, CCRA basically had the same results as in previous years.

January 2025 in the 119th Congress, CCRA was reintroduced as bill HB38 and in the Senate as SB65.  In the Senate, it was referred to the Judiciary Committee where it sits.  The House Judiciary Committee presented an amended version and it has been on the list ‘scheduled for action’ since October 2005. 

The Constitution should be the foundation of any political party. The 2nd Amendment is in the Constitution’s Bill of Rights and without the 2nd Amendment, the others wouldn’t exist.

Neither of the two New York Senators (Schumer and Gillibrand) have signed on to the bill.  (Not exactly a surprise!)

New York State has 7 Republican Congressional Representatives of which three have signed onto this bill. In addition, Nick Langworthy (23rd) and Claudia Tenney (24th) were original co-sponsors and Elise Stefanik (21st) signed on in April 2026.

Nicolas LaLota (1st), Andrew Garbarino (2nd), Nicole Malliotakis (11th) and Michael Lawler (17th) are the four Republican representatives that have never signed onto this bill.  Why?  Probably because their districts happen to cover or surround New York City or Long Island. They probably believe that if their constituents saw them as openly supporting gun bills, they would not get re-elected. 

They’re representing what they believe their constituents want, but along the way have given up their principles of supporting the Constitution.  Especially in Long Island’s 1st and 2nd Districts which often vote Republican.

I would recommend constituents in those four districts remind their representatives that they took an oath to defend the Constitution and demonstrate it by signing on to HB38.

As to Schumer and Gillibrand, it might not hurt to remind them that they took a similar oath of office to defend the Constitution and there are legal gun owners in New York who will vote this November for a party that supports 2A.