1. United States
2. N.C.
3. Letter

I see that the General Assembly is scheduled to vote on overriding the Governor's veto of the Freedom to Carry Act (HB 5/SB 50) on Monday (June 22). As your constituent, I urge you to not override this veto. North Carolina’s current concealed carry permitting system is an important public-safety safeguard, and repealing it would weaken protections for everyone—families, workers, students, and law enforcement. The Freedom to Carry Act would allow people to carry concealed handguns in public without a permit, background check, or safety training. That change sounds small on paper, but it is a major shift in how North Carolina manages risk in everyday life. When more people carry concealed firearms in more places—on roads, in bars, and in parking lots—ordinary conflicts are more likely to escalate into lethal violence. The goal of legislation should be to prevent those outcomes, not increase the likelihood that a confrontation becomes a shooting. North Carolina has strong reasons to reject permitless carry. Public support for keeping permit requirements remains high. Polling shows that 77% of North Carolinians oppose repealing the permit requirement for carrying concealed handguns, reflecting that residents, including many gun owners, want responsible guardrails in place. Furthermore, experience from other states shows permitless carry is associated with higher rates of gun violence. Research finds that removing concealed carry permit requirements can increase gun homicides and gun deaths after the change. A system that requires a permit is not simply red tape; it is a practical method for promoting responsible gun ownership and for ensuring basic standards are met before concealed carry is allowed in public. In Texas, a permitless carry state since 2021, a father of three was shot to death in an argument about a parking spot, just months after enactment. Less than a year after Tennessee enacted a permitless carry law, a manager shot at a customer who complained about the wait time at a restaurant. Just days after Georgia enacted permitless carry, an 18-year-old shot a man in a supermarket over a dispute in the meat department. These examples are a matter of public record. It's not that they couldn't have happened in North Carolina under our current permit system; it's that they are so much more likely to happen, and to happen more often, if the Freedom to Carry Act becomes law. North Carolina’s current concealed-carry permitting system is not unduly burdensome. It functions much like the process of earning a driver’s license. It doesn’t claim that responsible people don’t exist. It DOES set a baseline so the public isn’t left to absorb preventable harm. The permit requirement includes a background check and encourages applicants to complete safety and responsibility standards before carrying a loaded handgun in public. That approach reflects a simple principle: operating a deadly weapon in public has real consequences for innocent people nearby. If the state requires demonstrated knowledge and responsibility before someone can drive a car, why should a person be allowed to carry a handgun—capable of killing at the first mistake—without any comparable experience or training? Requiring a permit encourages firearm owners to take their responsibility seriously. It supports accountability, reinforces safety training, and helps confirm that carriers understand safe handling and lawful conduct. For these reasons, I ask you to uphold the veto and protect North Carolina from weaker gun laws that place communities at greater risk.