Nixon cuts $59M in funding after tax-break veto override

Under previous state law, citizens had to complete a form and a one-day gun safety training program to qualify for concealed carry, and local law enforcement had the right to deny a permit to an applicant it found to be too risky.

Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. The bill also requires the state to pay for photo IDs for those lacking them.

The legislation not only will allow people to carry concealed weapons without obtaining any permit, but will also make Missouri a so-called "stand your ground" state, allowing people to shoot first if they feel threatened.

Missourians can carry concealed firearms without the previously required eight-hour training course and permit which became mandatory in 2003. Encourage your family, friends and fellow gun owners to visit this site and contact their lawmakers in support of overriding Governor Nixon's Veto of SB 656.

Democratic Rep. Stacey Newman countered: "This bill is voter fraud on its face".

St. Joe Guns Manager dough Scheidegger said he is happy the state is becoming more gun-friendly, but hopes people will get their concealed carry permit anyway as it teaches valuable skills.

House sponsor Jason Alferman, R-Hermann, contended that the photo-ID requirement would help guard against vote fraud.

The bill - which is estimated to cost the state $17 million a year - is an implementation measure that would go into effect only if Missouri voters in November approve a proposed constitutional amendment to allow the state to require voters to show a photo ID at the polls.

The new budget cuts will be on top of $115 million of spending that Nixon blocked shortly after the state's roughly $27 billion operating budget took effect in July. The National Rifle Association set up tables in the Rotunda between the House and Senate chamber, dispatching scores of volunteers to talk to lawmakers in support of the bill.

Meanwhile, about 150 people rallied with the Missouri chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America.

GOP Rep. Kevin Engler said the gun controllers have repeatedly predicted deadly consequences on all the gun legislation ever passed in Missouri.

The wide-ranging bill would also reduce the penalty for carrying a firearm into buildings where it is not allowed from a felony to a misdemeanor and implement a so-called "stand your ground" law that says people no longer have a duty to try to retreat before using lethal force if they think their life is in danger.

Some legislators anxious that looser gun laws would put racial minorities at greater risk.

In addition to reasserting the right of citizens to carry arms for self-defense without a permit, SB 656 also provided more legal protections for citizens forced to use firearms to defend themselves and loved ones both inside the home and outside the home.

Dotson's opposition to the Republican legislature's bill is shared by both the state's fraternal order of police and police chief's association.