Is South Carolina Going to Pass Open Carry?

Many people often forget that South Carolina does not have open carry legislation on the books. South Carolina is currently ranked at a decent 22nd place for Guns & Ammo magazine’s rankings for the top states for gun owners in America.

Outside of South Carolina, California, Florida, Illinois, and New York are the only states in the nation that don’t allow for open carry. Now, elected officials in the Palmetto State are starting to put forward gradual steps in reversing South Carolina’s ban on open carry.

“This is an incremental step towards restoring our constitutional freedoms,” State Representative Bobby Cox declared. The South Carolina elected official is among 67 state reps who are supporting the legislation.

The legislation in question, the  “Open Carry with Training Act”, is only applicable to individuals who possess a concealed carry permit, and allows South Carolinians to open carry in locations where they can already engage in concealed carry. 

Although South Carolina would be better served by passing Constitutional Carry — the idea that any lawful individual can carry a firearm without having — its legislation to relax open carry restrictions is a good first step in shoring up the state’s gun policies and getting it in line with the rest of the nation with regards to open carry.