Concealed Carry License Eliminated in Proposed Michigan House Bill as Republicans Gain Long-Sought Momentum

Republican legislators in Michigan looking to expand gun rights and erase long-standing regulations across the state have presented bills this week that would change the concealed carry landscape.

Under proposed new laws, Michigan gun owners could carry concealed weapons without a license or training and gun license holders could carry loaded weapons into gun-free zones. The legislation to allow individuals to carry concealed weapons without a permit in Michigan has been an effort for decades, but it is only now that observers think it may actually pass.

Michigan's House Committee on Military Veterans and Homeland Security took up the two gun-related bills this week, according to mlive.com. The bills include "one to decriminalize carrying a concealed pistol with an expired license and another to allow residents to carry loaded rifles on their own property, including on off-road vehicles."

The two bills are not formally linked, mlive.com reported, but they are among "a general grouping from Republicans looking to expand gun rights and peel back regulations. The caucus named protecting second amendment rights as one of its top priorities this session."

The movement by Republicans in Michigan to relax state gun laws mirrors recent efforts by conservatives in states including Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia to strengthen abortion laws.

As for Michigan gun law, current legislation requires a firearms training course that is state approved before individuals can receive a concealed carry permit. Michigan currenty has more than 616,000 active concealed carry weapon permits. The state's population is nearly 10 million.

Michigan's Military Veterans and Homeland Security Committee Chair Rep. Beau LaFave, R-Iron Mountain, told mlive.com the more relaxed gun carry bills are part of a "broader effort to strengthen second amendment rights in Michigan, including a bills allowing citizens to carry concealed firearms without permission from the state, and allowing CPL holders to enter gun-free zones."

LaFave told mlive.com that Michigan should be a "constitutional carry" state -- referencing the Second Amendment right to bear arms.

If House Bill 4029 passes in Michigan, it would allow individuals to carry a concealed pistol or hunting knife without a permit anywhere in the state but into designated gun-free zones, including schools, churches, stadiums and child-care centers. If the bill became law then individuals who had a license could likely carry a concealed pistol or hunting knife anywhere in the state, including into gun-free zones.