MONTGOMERY, Alabama ---

that would allow for free, lifetime permits to carry pistols in vehicles and that would make other changes to state gun laws.

The bill passed after hours of debate and a parade of amendments, some of which were approved. It now moves to the House of Representatives.

Those who received a permit to carry in their vehicles would have to undergo a background check and the permits would be revocable if, for example, the permit holder committed a crime, said Sen. Scott Beason, R-Gardendale, the bill’s sponsor.

Under current law, a concealed carry permit is required to carry a pistol in a vehicle.

"This is about making sure that law abiding citizens have the ability to defend themselves and their family," Beason said.

People would still need permits to carry concealed pistols on their person outside of their vehicle. So in essence, the bill would create a second type of permit, one specifically for a vehicle.

If a person has a concealed carry permit to carry a pistol on their person, they would not need the separate permit for carrying in a vehicle.

Beason said the bill would also clarify what he said is the spirit of current Alabama law as an "open carry" state. "From the very start I've said all this bill is really setting out to do was to clarify what was already in practice," Beason said.

The bill specifies that carrying a “visible, holstered firearm in a public place, in and of itself,” does not constitute the crime of disorderly conduct.

Sen. Vivian Davis Figures, D-Mobile, who opposed the bill, said she was concerned it would lead to too many people openly carrying guns.

"We're going to end up with Alabama being like the wild, wild West," said Figures, one of five senators to vote against the measure.

The bill would require sheriffs to decide within 30 days whether to issue a concealed carry pistol permit. Currently there is no time limit on a decision in the law, Beason said.

Under the bill, those denied a permit would be able to appeal in District Court.

People could buy concealed carry pistol permits for up to five years, rather than the current requirement for annual renewal.

The bill would also provide that an employer could not prohibit employees from storing a gun in their private vehicle at work.

The Business Council of Alabama had issued a statement earlier this week expressing opposition to the bill, saying it would erode constitutional property rights of businesses.

Some law enforcement officials have also expressed concerns about loosening restrictions on people carrying guns in public.

Beason's bill originally would have allowed carrying guns in vehicles with no permits. A substitute bill he introduced today, which is what ultimately passed, added the requirement for the free lifetime permit.

"That was the big sticking point that we all know sheriffs were talking about, and we dealt with that," Beason said.

The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 28-5. Voting against it were Sens. Billy Beasley, D-Clayton, Linda Coleman, D-Birmingham, Priscilla Dunn, D-Bessemer, Quinton Ross, D-Montgomery and Figures, according to the Legislature's website.

According to a news release from the office of Sen. Del Marsh, R-Anniston, the bill also would:

-- Create protections for business entities so that the entity has no duty to guard against the criminal act of a third party and is not liable for the actions of employees whose actions are outside the line and scope of their employment.

-- Allows owners of property open to the public to post adequate notice prohibiting firearms and have violators, including licensed carriers, arrested for trespassing if the individual refuses to leave when asked in the presence of a law enforcement agent. -- Establishes that a business entity may not prohibit a person's transportation or storage of a firearm or ammunition if certain conditions are met and allows for civil action in the event there is a violation of this property.

-- Creates a list of prohibited places where a firearm may not be possessed without expressed permission of the owner (examples include college and high school athletic events, courthouses, and police and sheriff offices)

-- Expands the "Castle Doctrine" to businesses, allowing for the use of deadly force in self-defense when an intruder enters his or her business.

Updated at 6:34 p.m. and at 8:27 p.m. to add more details about the bill.

