Florida Carry is a non-profit organization that promotes

gun rights The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, including securi ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. The organization was formed in 2011 to organize gun lobby groups to legally oppose some forms of gun legislation in Florida. In 2011, the organization successfully supported a bill that allowed out-of-state purchases of

long gun A long gun is a category of firearms with long barrels. In small arms, a ''long gun'' or longarm is generally designed to be held by both hands and braced against the shoulder, in contrast to a handgun, which can be fired being held with a single ...

s. In 2012, they supported a successful bill that allowed

honorably discharged A military discharge is given when a member of the armed forces is released from their obligation to serve. Each country's military has different types of discharge. They are generally based on whether the persons completed their training and th ...

veterans to obtain a gun license regardless of age. In 2013, the group opposed a bill that would have required

anger management Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...

classes for ammunition buyers. In 2014, the group supported a bill that would have allowed citizens to transport unlicensed guns in their vehicles during evacuations. This bill failed to pass. In the same year they successfully lobbied for a bill that allowed legal immunity to people who used a gun for self-defence during a crime.

History

Florida Carry, Inc. was formed in 2011 for the purpose of coordination of the activities of some gun rights advocates and to provide a legal entity capable of lobbying the state legislature and file legal challenges in state and federal courts.

Legislative activity

Florida Carry has actively lobbied the Florida Legislature and Governor on self-defense, firearms, and defensive weapons related topics.

2011 Session

During the 2011 Florida Legislative Session Florida Carry's legislative work focused on the legalization of Open Carry and amending Florida's 1987 Firearms Preemption Statute to create a private right of action against state actors who violate the law
HB 517
and its companion bill, SB 234, initially provided for the licensed Open Carry of firearms, licensed carry of firearms and defensive weapons on college and university campuses, storage of firearms in private vehicles, the out of state purchase of Long Guns, and

Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) is an executive department of the government of Florida. The Commissioner of Agriculture (directly elected by voters statewide for a four-year term, and a member of the Florid ...

finger printing services for concealed weapons and firearms license applications. Opposed by the Florida Retail Federation and the

Florida Sheriffs Association The Florida Sheriffs Association (FSA) is a non-profit professional association of Florida’s 66 elected Sheriffs, along with approximately 3,500 business leaders and 70,000 citizens throughout the state. The FSA’s mission is to enhance law en ...

, the bills passed without the Open Carry and Campus Carry provisions. HB 45 and its companion bill, SB 402, provided for Firearms Preemption law enforceability and expansion of the preemption to include substantially all state and local government agencies of Florida. The amended law provides penalties for government officials who knowingly & willfully violate Florida's Firearms Preemption Statute, allows for the collection of attorney's fees, fines, and damages. HB 45 Passed and became effective October 1, 2011.

2012 Session

In 2012 Florida Carry's lobbying efforts centered on the passage of HB 463 and SB 998. The bills provided for concealed carry licensure of current military service members and honorably discharged veterans to obtain a license to carry regardless of age or duty station. The bill also requires that fingerprint cards be accepted from military police and provost so that service members stationed overseas can complete their applications. The bills passed the Florida House and Senate unanimously.

2013 Session

The group opposed a Florida bill that would have required anger management courses for ammunition buyers.

2014 Session

During the 2014 Florida Legislative Session Florida Carry supported SB 296 in an attempt to create exceptions to criminal penalties for carrying or transporting firearms in public, with or without a license, during mandatory evacuations. Opposed by the

, the bill failed to pass. Florida Carry also supported changes to Florida's self-defense laws to allow immunity from prosecution or civil action for the threatened use of force in response to a criminal attack, an exception to mandatory minimum sentencing laws in cases of imperfect self-defense with a firearm, expungement of arrest records in cases of lawful self-defense. HB 89 became law on June 20, 2014.https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2014/89

References

{{USgunorgs Gun rights advocacy groups in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Florida Organizations established in 2011