The Alabama Senate, divided sharply along party lines, has passed a bill eliminating the requirement for a permit from a county sheriff to carry a concealed handgun.
The Senate passed the bill by Sen. Gerald Allen, R-Tuscaloosa, after voting to cut off debate.
Democrats in the Senate opposed the bill and sought to amend it.
The bill passed by a vote of 25-8, with all eight Democrats in the Senate voting against it. It moves to the House of Representatives.
Allen said people should not have to buy a pistol permit to exercise their Second Amendment rights.
“It’s unthinkable that you have to pay a fee for a constitutional right. That’s really the heart of the whole issue,” Allen said.
Some law enforcement officials had argued against the bill in committee, saying it would take away an important enforcement tool.
People would still have the option of buying pistol permits, Allen noted, which he said would be important for those who want to carry in other states that recognize Alabama’s concealed carry law.
Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, said the bill would not promote public safety but would turn the state into the “wild, wild West.”
The bill was one of a set of controversial bills on the Senate calendar today that Democrats generally opposed.