After over seven hours of heavy debate on the House floor yesterday and today, Constitutional Carry has finally passed the Texas House – for the first time in Texas history! 

CSHB 1927 by Schaefer passed Second Reading yesterday with an 84-56 vote, and it passed Third Reading today with an 87-58 vote. Now it will move on to the Senate.

This is a historic moment for Texas, as a Constitutional Carry bill has never moved to the floor of either chamber in this state. We are thankful for the strong leadership and courage of Representative Matt Schaefer in masterfully defending your rights, and for the many hours of labor from his staff.

We also want to thank the other members who filed Constitutional Carry bills in the House and worked to bring the issue forward: ChairJames  White, and Representatives Kyle Biedermann, Cole Hefner, and Shelby Slawson. Thank you also to the 87 members who voted in favor of the bill! (See their names below.)

The bill now moves to the Senate. Only once has the Senate ever filed a bill on this issue (2015), and Constitutional Carry has never received a hearing.

It would be unthinkable for the Senate to let Constitutional Carry die after it has passed the House by such a large margin. We need you to take action. 

Call Lt. Governor Dan Patrick

Call Lieutenant Governor Patrick’s office at 512-463-0001. Ask him to prioritize passing Constitutional Carry, CSHB 1927.

Call Your State Senator 

Urge your State Senator to support Constitutional Carry. Click here to find the phone number and email address of your State Senator.

Also, ask for a phone or Zoom meeting with your State Senator or an appropriate staff member. It is critical for you to discuss this issue and explain why they must pass it this session.

How Did Your Representative Vote?

Here are the names of the 87 State Representatives who voted YES on this bill today: 
Allison; Anderson; Ashby; Bailes; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Biedermann; Bonnen; Buckley; Burns; Burrows; Cain; Canales; Capriglione; Cason; Clardy; Cook; Craddick; Cyrier; Darby; Dean; Dutton; Ellzey; Frank; Frullo; Gates; Geren; Goldman; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Hefner; Holland; Huberty; Hull; Hunter; Jetton; Kacal; King, K.; King, P.; King, T.; Klick; Krause; Kuempel; Lambert; Landgraf; Larson; Leach; Leman; Lozano; Metcalf; Middleton; Morales, E.; Morrison; Murphy; Murr; Noble; Oliverson; Pacheco; Paddie; Parker; Patterson; Paul; Price; Raney; Raymond; Rogers; Sanford; Schaefer; Schofield; Shaheen; Shine; Slaton; Slawson; Smith; Smithee; Spiller; Stephenson; Stucky; Swanson; Thompson, E.; Tinderholt; Toth; VanDeaver; Vasut; White; Wilson

And here are the names of the 58 State Representatives who voted NO: 
Allen; Anchia; Beckley; Bernal; Bowers; Bucy; Campos; Cole; Coleman; Collier; Cortez; Crockett; Davis; Deshotel; Dominguez; Fierro; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Hernandez; Hinojosa; Howard; Israel; Johnson, A.; Johnson, J.D.; Johnson, J.E.; Longoria; Lopez; Lucio; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; Meyer; Meza; Minjarez; Moody; Morales Shaw; Morales, C.; Muñoz; Neave; Ordaz Perez; Ortega; Perez; Ramos; Reynolds; Rodriguez; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Sherman; Talarico; Thierry; Thompson, S.; Turner, C.; Turner, J.; Vo; Walle; Wu; Zwiener

Present but not voting:  
Button; Mr. Speaker(C)

What Does CSHB 1927 Do?

CSHB 1927 came to the floor as a strong bill and passed with several amendments, mostly strengthening it. Although no bill is ever perfect, we are very happy with the bill language as passed by the House.

Here is what the bill language stated as brought to the House floor: 

• Anyone age 21 and older who can legally possess a firearm will be able to carry a handgun, open or concealed, without a permit, in virtually all the same places that LTC holders can carry a handgun (except college campuses).
• The prohibited places (schools, polling places, courthouses, bars, etc.) will not apply unless you receive personal oral notice that carry is prohibited and fail to depart.
• The poorly-worded ban on carry while intoxicated will be repealed, although it will still be a crime to appear in a public place while intoxicated to a degree that you may endanger yourself or another person.

The following amendments passed on the House floor:

• Slaton Amendment: Foster parents who may legally possess a firearm will be able to carry firearms while in their vehicles (currently this protection only applies to LTC holders).
• Senfronia Thompson Amendment: The records will be expunged for anyone who was convicted only of unlawful carry of a firearm under a statute that is being repealed in this bill.
• Goodwin Amendment: DPS will collect and report information on the number of annual LTC applications compared to the previous annual averages and any other relevant information related to the carrying of firearms by persons in this state.
• Dutton Amendment: A peace officer may not make an investigatory stop or other temporary detention to inquire as to a person’s possession of a handgun solely because the person is carrying a partially or wholly visible handgun in a holster.
• Schaefer-Huberty-Thierry-Romero Amendment: The prohibited places will not apply unless you receive personal or written oral notice that carry is prohibited and fail to depart.

In summary, this remains a strong bill with strong protections, and we are proud to work to support it through the Senate.