South Carolina is a step closer to allowing residents to carry firearms without a permit. 

On Feb. 1, the state Senate voted 28-15 to approve a House bill deemed “constitutional carry” by proponents. If passed into law, the bill will allow eligible residents of the state to carry firearms, whether openly or concealed, without requiring registration for a state permit or receiving any training.  

The bill, H.B. 3594, will return to the House this week for a review of amendments added by senators before it heads to Gov. Henry McMaster’s desk. The legislation was initially introduced in early 2023 by Rep. Bobby Cox, R-Greenville.  

Upstate lawmakers were heavily involved in promoting the legislation in both chambers.

Over the past two weeks, the bill was debated in the Senate chambers and largely championed by Sen. Shane Martin, R-Spartanburg, who called the bill’s eventual passage a major victory for Second Amendment rights.  

The Senate’s amended version of the bill includes some changes to the House’s original legislation. Senators added graduated penalties for unregistered firearm carriers who violate weapons laws, a requirement for citizens to report stolen guns to law enforcement and an initiative to implement free Concealed Weapon Permit (CWP) training by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division to encourage gun owners to carry responsibly.

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After some of the more contested debate on the Senate floor, the amended legislation allows businesses owners to retain the right to mark their business as a gun-free zone.  

The proposed changes are a departure from the previous legislation passed in 2021 that allows for those 18 or older to own a firearm but requires that individuals be 21 years old to apply for a concealed weapons permit.  

Those in opposition to the bill voiced concerns for public safety, specifically for law enforcement.  

If signed into law, South Carolina would join 27 other states that have similar permitless carry laws. However, Cox told the Greenville News he is unsure if the House will concur on the revised bill or not. 

“A lot of the gun groups are not happy about the amendments that were put into it,” Cox said Monday morning. “The fate of the bill is still up in the air.”

Led by Upstate proponents of “liberty,” here’s what the bill will change to firearm carry law and what’s next 

Currently, South Carolina law allows concealed weapon owners to openly carry a handgun if they are at least 21 years old, obtain a permit after taking eight hours of training and pass a background check. 

The proposed new law, which will be reviewed by the House this week after the Senate’s passage, would make it so anyone over the age of 18 can possess firearms without needing to register for a permit or receive any training. 

The bill loosens restrictions on firearm possession after the passage of the state’s “Open Carry” law in 2021.  

Previously: This week in SC politics: House advances ‘Constitutional Carry.’

Last week, Senate Republicans fueled the bill’s support with 27 votes, while 13 Democrats, one Republican and one Independent stood opposed. Sen. Mike Fanning (D-Fairfield) was the sole Democrat to vote for the bill, while three legislators were excused absent.  

Proponents of the bill have argued that the Second Amendment negates the need for permit requirements.

Sen. Shane Martin (R-Spartanburg), who asserted these rights are “enshrined” in the Constitution, said the bill was a long-time goal of his during an explanation of the bill last week. 

“Since I came into the Senate, I’ve campaigned on this issue, and every election since I’ve campaigned on this,” Martin said. “(People) want the right to exercise their Second Amendment rights without infringement by government.”  

Martin denied the bill eliminates the need for CWPs entirely, which can allow people to validly carry a firearm in certain other states.   

“Liberty has two parts – freedom and responsibility,” Martin said during introductory remarks for the bill on Wednesday, Jan. 24. “We have the freedom to exercise our rights, but we also have to have the responsibility to exercise those rights. So, anybody that isn’t comfortable or doesn’t know what they need to do with a gun, they need to look in the mirror and check themselves a little bit. But for everybody that knows what they’re doing and is a legal gun owner, they should be able to exercise their Second Amendment rights under the Constitution.” 

Rep. Cox sponsored the original version of the bill in the House, which was first read before the House in January 2023. 

Cox said the bill will return to the House possibly as early as Wednesday this week, and a debate will take place on whether representatives concur with the Senate’s amendments. If the House doesn’t agree with the changes, members from both chambers will meet in a committee to discuss differences in each version of the bill. 

Senate amends legislation to add graduated penalties, optional state CWP training 

Senators made several amendments to the House version of the legislation, including free state-sponsored firearm training for citizens, mandated reporting of firearm theft, an age reduction for firearm purchasers and graduated penalties for permitless carriers who commit a crime.  

After debate that pitted the individual rights of gun owners and property owners at odds, a section that would allow gun-free zones, such as schools, courts, detention facilities and private businesses, remains intact.

Late Wednesday, an amendment introduced by Sen. Shane Massey, R-Edgefield, and Sen. Chip Campsen, R-Charleston, passed that would mandate SLED to provide free CWP training twice a month in every county.  That training would be optional for those wishing to carry, though many Senators broadly agreed that they would prefer those unfamiliar with firearms train.

While Cox said he is “totally in support of” citizens voluntarily training, he objects to another element of the amendment that increases graduated penalties for permitless firearm carriers who commit a crime, but not for CWP holders.

“It gives more penalties to someone who doesn’t have a CWP if they commit a crime, so it almost creates two classes of criminals,” Cox told the News. “I don’t like that amendment. I would like to kind of unify it. A crime’s a crime.” 

Under current state penalties, the first offense for a concealed weapons violation is a misdemeanor with a fine of $1000 or up to a year in prison. Massey’s amendment added a second offense misdemeanor penalty carrying a sentence of up to three years, and a felony conviction with up to five years imprisonment for third and subsequent offenses. 

In post on X Thursday evening, Governor Henry McMaster called the additional penalties a “huge step toward closing the ‘revolving door’ on career repeat criminals.” 

An amendment introduced by Sen. Tameika Isaac Devine, D-Richland, established that civilians would have a duty to report the theft of their guns to their local law enforcement agency.  

The Senate also reduced the age of handgun carry from 21 to 18, a change Cox says he supports.  

Near the end of session Thursday, Sen. Mia McLeod, I-Richland, lamented her fear of the state turning into the “wild, wild west” with the bill’s passage.

Opponents of the bill cite public safety concerns for law enforcement, private citizens

Much debate centered around concerns that permitless carry poses a threat to public safety, and particularly law enforcement. 

Sen. Luke Rankin, R-Horry, was the sole Republican to vote against the bill. Rankin cited concerns by law enforcement and questioned whether incentivizing handgun training, rather than requiring it, would be effective.  

“I pray that everyone who picks up a gun (is motivated to train),” Rankin said during his remarks on the bill Thursday, shortly before it passed. “To all the CWP holders out there, God bless you for the training.” 

According to CWP data from SLED, almost 3,000 permits were denied in 2023 and 1,605 permits were revoked. At the end of 2023, over half a million South Carolinians had an active CWP.  

At a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee hearing in April 2023, several local police chiefs voiced their objections to the bill. Rankin cited the testimony of chiefs from the cities of Conway and Myrtle Beach, both in his district, during debate. 

City of Anderson Police Chief Jim Stewart also spoke at the April hearing.

“I believe there is a need for some type of training for safety reasons,” Stewart said. “We’ve seen law enforcement officers over the years that are in this position, and they’re put in that position and they freeze up. I would hate to see someone with no training whatsoever period enter a situation where their own weapon could be used against them.”

Some legislators also voiced concern that the legislation would put guns in the hands of those breaking the law.

“To give law abiding citizens and ruthless criminals equal access to guns…is senseless and reckless,” McLeod said.

‘We have to make this debate personal:’ Greenville advocates talk gun violence awareness

Advocacy groups against gun violence, like Moms Demand Action, have also consistently spoken out against the bill citing concerns for public safety. On Thursday, Devine thanked the group for showing up “every single day” of debate.

In response to Martin’s explanation of the bill, Devine also referenced national gun theft from vehicles data that put Greenville in the top 10 of cities analyzed at a rate of 141.7 per 100,000 people. Columbia and North Charleston placed third and fourth, respectively, and Charleston was also within the top 20.

According to four-year estimates of mortality data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from 2018 to 2021, 1,044 people die on average each year in South Carolina from gun violence.

Data directly from the CDC from 2021, the most recent available, shows South Carolina had a firearm mortality rate of 22.4 per 100,000 people, the 11^th highest rate in the country. 

Chalmers Rogland covers public safety for the Spartanburg Herald-Journal and USA Today Network. Reach him via email at crogland@gannett.com.