AUSTIN — In their push to make open carry the law of the Lone Star land, legislators also may be extending the right to Texans who have lost their gun licenses, as well as out-of-staters who never would be eligible for one here.

“The concern is, if we’re going to have open carry, people carrying guns, which I’m opposed to in the first place, then they should at least have the training that’s required,” said Sen. José Rodríguez, D-El Paso. “Frankly, it’s an issue of more safety for the community and we need to be more concerned about that.”

Rodríguez was referring to a loophole in state law that allows someone who has had his Texas concealed carry permit revoked to continue to carry a handgun using a license from another state that may have less restrictive rules. Now, as state lawmakers are slated to legalize licensed open carry - with this same loophole - some legislators are hoping they can find a last-minute fix.

In Texas, it is legal to openly carry rifles and shotguns, but the state has prohibited the same practice for handguns since Reconstruction. There is strong support among state lawmakers this session to remove that ban.

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Under legislation that was temporarily delayed in the House on a parliamentary procedure Tuesday but is expected to pass in a few days, Texans who pass the training and background check requirements to get a concealed handgun license also would be able to openly carry their firearms in shoulder or hip holsters.

In removing this ban for residents, however, lawmakers also would be extending the right to open carry to many people with gun licenses from other states. Through so-called “reciprocity agreements,” Texas recognizes the concealed handgun permits and licenses issued by 41 other states.

The more than 7 million people who legally can carry a concealed weapon in these states, therefore, are welcome to do the same when in Texas.

The permitting and licensure requirements in many of those states, however, are far less stringent than in Texas. In Alabama, for example, a gun owner can get licensed without any training.

Committing a misdemeanor offense does not bar someone from getting a license in many states. And elsewhere, including in Iowa and Montana, residents do not have to be 21 to get a license to concealed carry.

Texas’ rules, by contrast, are relatively stringent. To get a license here, a resident must be at least 21, must submit to training and testing and may not have a history of crime - including Class A and B misdemeanors - substance abuse or certain mental health disorders. Unlike many other states, Texas’ rules go even further, barring anyone who is delinquent on their taxes or child support payments from getting a license.

The looser requirements in other states have been a boon for Texans who have lost their state licenses. During an hours-long debate on open carry legislation last month, Rodríguez said he was concerned this reciprocity loophole would allow Texans to openly carry their handguns with an out-of-state permit, even after they lost their own state license due to an arrest or other violation.

“If someone loses their license here under state law, and then they just go to another state and get a license there and come back into Texas, we ought to be able to regulate that,” Rodríguez said last week. “I’m not impressed if somebody’s got a license from 'X’ state, and they only need to do a minimal amount of training, don’t have to renew their license or anything that would ensure that this individual is well prepared, well trained and cautious enough in the use of a weapon.”

Rodríguez’s attempts to amend the Senate bill, sponsored by Republican Craig Estes of Wichita Falls, failed. He wanted to ensure anyone who had lost a Texas concealed handgun license could not continue to carry here - openly or otherwise - with a permit from another state. Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, said he would work to ensure a similar amendment is proposed when the bill is debated on the House floor, which could be as soon as Friday.

“It’s important for people to know that the criminal background check may not work if someone can get a license in another state. And that this would apply to open carry,” said Coleman.

The gap between what Texas and other states require to get a concealed carry license also is of concern to law enforcement. Several groups said they would favor an amendment like the one Coleman is considering.

“We’ll let our friends know in the Legislature that we would like this corrected on the floor before this passes. I think that’s a common-sense issue,” said Ray Hunt, president of the Houston Police Officers’ Union.

The Dallas Police Association and the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, or CLEAT, the state’s largest police officers’ union with 18,500 members, would also favor such an amendment.

“If it were amended, it would be a safeguard and we would support it,” CLEAT Executive Director Charley Wilkison said.

The open-carry debate has been fraught with public relations nightmares this year. Lawmakers, especially in the state House, have decried bullying tactics employed by some activists who support legalizing unlicensed open carry in Texas. One lawmaker received a full-time security detail after being confronted by a group of gun rights advocates in his office, and later on, a threatening video from that same group’s leader had some lawmakers concerned.

Even with the bad press, however, gun bills sailed through the Senate and in House committees. In the next few weeks, lawmakers in the lower chamber are set to vote on open carry and another bill that would allow concealed carry on college campuses. Then, all that will be needed is the governor’s signature to make the proposals law.

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Gov. Greg Abbott has promised to sign any bill that furthers gun rights in Texas.

lauren.mcgaughy@chron.com

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