ME: Governor Paul Le Page Signs Constitutional Carry

For a late Independence Day present to patriots, Governor Paul Le Page signed LD 652, the Maine constitutional carry bill.   The law will go into effect 90 days after the legislature adjourns.  The bill was signed this Wednesday, July 8th, 2015, in a ceremony that was closed to the press.  I received notice from the press secretary, Adrienne Bennett, that the bill was signed about noon, central time.   Further confirmation comes from wmtw.com:

AUGUSTA, Maine —Maine Gov. Paul LePage has signed a bill that will allow residents to carry a concealed handgun without obtaining a permit.

Maine will become the sixth state in the country with such a policy when the law goes into effect 90 days after lawmakers adjourn later this month.

The count of the number of states with constitutional, or permitless carry of handguns both openly and concealed varies because of slight differences in state law.  By my count, Maine is the seventh state to restore constitutional carry, after Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Wyoming, and Vermont.  Three other states passed constitutional carry this year, only to have the bills vetoed by Democrat governors in New Hampshire, Montana, and West Virginia.

Some writers include Montana (constitutional carry in 99% of the State), and Mississippi, where permitless concealed carry is limited to containers that completely enclose the firearm.   Some exclude Arkansas, even though the law there is more clearly written than the one in Vermont.

 ©2015 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
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