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Open carry is illegal in Texas? I would not have thought that.
Not only that but concealed carry is relatively new. But you can have a loaded gun in your car with no permit & open carry is legal on private property. The laws across the country are a hodge podge of thrown together statutes that often make no sense.
We are both avid shooters and hunters. We are trying to figure out where to relocate to. A large part of the criteria is that the State of choice is very...very gun owner friendly, and that locations to shoot are plentiful. What do you all suggest? (retired...so jobs are not an issue) All your wisdom is welcome....thanks in advance for your suggestions
The good news is that there are really not that many states that are, to oversimplify things, anti-gun, like Mass and NY.
Really, you can draw a line N-S and E-W through St. Louis, essentially everything to the south or west of there, except CA, is good. North and east of there, there are a few good states like VT, NH, ME, but it's mostly bad.
So, tell us more about what kind of climate you want, and what do you want to hunt? What do you like to shoot? How important is cost of living (and how do you live, what level of income do you have?)
Indiana is very gun owner friendly. In recent years, many laws favoring gun owners have been passed. Here is a list of what you can and can't do, starting from historic past followed by more recent changes:
Can do:
-Can buy AKs/ARs/G3s, etc.. No high capacity magazine limit. No restrictions on how many guns you can buy at one time.
-Around $140 gets you a lifetime handgun carry license/permit. This was a recent change from a four year then renew. Now you pay your money and you get a piece of paper that is good for the rest of your life. By law, you have to notify the state police of an address change. However, a replacement copy with the new address is only $15 or so. The carry license pretty much lets you carry anywhere you want. A recent law change forbids government entities from imposing restrictions with a few exceptions (day care centers, courts, hospitals with prison wards). This means locals can't ban guns at their town/township/city parks, while it was legal to carry elsewhere in the municipality. Carry in state parks is also permitted. You may carry concealed or open.
-Outside of a few exceptions (universities, K-12, daycare centers, and a few others), you can take your gun to work and leave it in your car. You can't be fired and business owners must allow this. I feel court rulings will likely come out on this in the future. So far, one court upheld a similar law out of Florida. It is known as a take your gun to work law. You can't carry it into the property though (unless allowed by the owners), but you can have it in your vehicle in the company parking lot.
-As part of a hiring process, employers are forbidden to ask about guns, or make any sort of condition about firearms as a condition of employment (example: "You are not allowed to carry a firearm while off the clock if you work for us.")
Can't do:
-K-12 property is no go for carrying. There is an exception if you are dropping off or picking up.
-Colleges and universities have thus far blocked the state from forcing them to allow people who are licensed to carry their firearms on the property. Not sure if this will ever change as a few of the larger universities in the state are known for excessive drinking, and the proposed laws would included the adult students.
-There are various exceptions for carrying that are very specific. Some are noted above in first section. No daycare, no buildings with a court, no hospital if there is a prison wing/section.
Shooting ranges:
-I believe locals are allowed to regulate shooting projectiles within their corporate limits. I could be wrong on this, but I think the recent law only had to deal with the carrying of a handgun with a license (no license needed to carry long guns). Most impose some sort of 300 yard rule. So if you live rural, you can shoot on your own property. If you live more urban or suburban, you likely will be under some sort of local ordinance which will prevent you from shooting on your own land.
-Some of our state parks and rec areas offer shooting ranges. The longest public one I know of offers a 200 yard rifle range. Most are 25, 50, and 100. There is at least one state range that is ran by a private vendor and they operate a very, very safe range. The Indy metro area is somewhat lacking in long ranges. The publicly ran one is the closest, and it is 30mins to an hour depending on where in the metro area you live (it is south of the city). However, we have seen an explosion of indoor private ranges in the city. One recently opened, another should be opening soon, and a third is also in the works.
-There are also numerous private ranges that are part of shooting clubs. Some require an NRA membership plus their fees, others just charge their own fees. Rules and regulations vary.
We are both avid shooters and hunters. We are trying to figure out where to relocate to. A large part of the criteria is that the State of choice is very...very gun owner friendly, and that locations to shoot are plentiful. What do you all suggest? (retired...so jobs are not an issue) All your wisdom is welcome....thanks in advance for your suggestions
Look no further than *TEXAS.*
Also, Texas is one of the states that will NOT "bow to" the Federal government with anything whatsoever that it tries to do and has no legal authority to do so.
I grew up in missoula and we owned kings ranch out there and sadly it is no longer there since grandfolks have passed and we used to ride horses out there and we were never without a gun boot on our saddles fully loaded we rode amongst alot of wild life . .. Montana is beautiful still too ..
Washington and Oregon are not bad if you want a state with a fairly large urban area.
In WA (where I live) getting a CCW entails about 5 minutes of paperwork, and being fingerprinted, and they mail it to you within 30 days. No required classes, tests, etc.
There are plenty of gun ranges, clubs, and shops in the Seattle area. Full autos are not legal but suppressors are, since last year. No laws on "assault weapons," mag capacities, etc.
WA has a very strong 'preemption' law so cities and towns cannot pass laws restricting guns from (say) libraries, parks, or transit. Any gun laws must be passed at the state level, so there is no patchwork of restrictions when going from town to town or county to county. The preemption law has proved to be very important from time to time when Seattle libs have thrown fits to get their way.
Fifteen years ago there there was a ballot measure I-676 which would have put in a bunch of gun-control rules and requirements. It was voted down by voters to the tune of 71-29, and there has been very little effort since by Democrats (who run the state) to push any new gun laws.
New Mexico; open carry no problem. Take a 2 day class and get you CCP.
Of course where I live here everyone carries one way or another. It is not uncommon to see someone open carry in Gallup...
Really, you can draw a line N-S and E-W through St. Louis, essentially everything to the south or west of there, except CA, is good. North and east of there, there are a few good states like VT, NH, ME, but it's mostly bad.
Wow... this is a little too generalized for me. Look at the Brady scorecard (Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence), CCW laws, reciprocity, open carry laws (OpenCarry.org - A Right Unexercised is a Right Lost!), and purchase requirements. Indiana, Wisc, WV, and Vt are better than many of the states in your "good" zones, especially more so than CO, NE, KS, WA, and OR. Ohio, NH, ME, are as good as all but maybe AZ, UT, MT, WY, and AK. PA & MI are far from bad. Illinois and the northeast urban corridor (MD, NJ, NY, MA, CT, RI), plus Cali, are the only states that are truly bad.
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