In the US state of Texas, gun owners can openly carry their weapons on the street and in most other public spaces, as well as on university campuses, giving the state the laxest gun laws in the country.

Texans still need to pass a federal background check when buying a firearm, however, state lawmakers approved a law earlier this year that reduced handgun licence application fees from $140 to $40, starting on September 1.

Investigators work at the scene of a deadly shooting at the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas. Credit:AP

Texas law also allows handgun license applicants to take handgun safety classes online, rather than in a classroom, in addition to at least one hour of shooting range instruction before taking a shooting test.

State law does not allow concealed guns in bars. But a business that earns less than half its revenue from alcohol does not qualify as a bar, and customers there are allowed to carry firearms.