House Bill 2 could legalize permitless gun carry in Georgia

A new year brings a new session under the Gold Dome.

Legislators are just weeks away from officially starting things off at the statehouse, and some proposed bills are already getting attention.

One could shake up Georgia's gun laws.

"I don't believe it's radical at all, I think it's conservative," said Tiger Republican state representative Matt Gurtler.

Gurtler prefiled legislation that would loosen the state's gun control laws.

It's a bill former Houston County district attorney Kelly Burke supports.

"Good guys with guns don't bother me -- bad guys with guns bother me, but they don't care what the law is," Burke said. "So let's favor toward the good guys with the guns."

Currently to carry a handgun in public, Georgians have to apply for a permit, pay a fee, and get a background check, among other steps.

If passed, Gurtler's House Bill 2 would allow most Georgians to carry without having to go through the permit process as long as they're otherwise legally able to own a gun.

Attorney Ari Freilich with the Giffords Law Center to prevent gun violence disagrees.

He says the current permit system should stay in place.

"Most people are responsible drivers, but we still have driver's license. Most people aren't terrorists, but we still go through security at the airport," he said. "To save human life and protect human life, I think it makes sense."