112th General Assembly
Policy Update

April 15, 2021

Firearm Legislation 

On April 8, 2021, Governor Bill Lee signed into law SB765/HB786 which amends state statute regarding the possession of a handgun. The bill has been engrossed as Public Chapter 108 and will become effective on July 1, 2021. Essentially, the bill removes the requirement for a permit to be obtained in order to carry a handgun, whether openly or concealed.  

The basic requirements for possessing a handgun are that the person be at least twenty-one years of age; or at least eighteen years of age if the person is on active duty status in the U.S. armed services, is a reservist, or has been honorably discharged. As well, the person must be able to lawfully possess the weapon and be in a place for which they are lawfully permitted. The law maintains handgun possession prohibitions for those convicted of a felony crime, a felony drug possession, stalking, driving under the influence, is considered to be mentally defective, or otherwise prohibited by 18 U.S.C. 922(g).

This new law does not appear to change the ability of a campus to prohibit weapons. However, the “guns in trunks” provision remains. Consequently, if a person enters a campus possessing a weapon, they must immediately place it, and its ammunition, in a secure place “kept from ordinary observation and locked within the trunk, glove box, or interior of the person's motor vehicle or a container securely affixed to the motor vehicle if the person is not in the motor vehicle.”

TICUA recommends consulting your campus attorney to compare this, and other legislation, against standing campus policies.