Although Windschitl indicated he supported the bill, he wasn’t sure it was necessary given how efficient the state’s current system is.

“We have already moved so close to constitutional carry with our ‘shall-issue’ system and the revisions that we made with our omnibus bill back in 2017 that it is a very streamlined, state-of-the-art system where citizens don’t face a high degree of burden,” he said. “Again I am an adamant supporter of it, but I also believe that the Freedom Amendment needs to come first before we move down that path.”

Reynolds appeared to have lukewarm feelings about the constitutional carry bill, stating she didn’t plan to advocate for its passage but “would take a look at it.”

“I am a Second Amendment advocate. I believe in the right to bear arms and I’m proud of what we’ve been able to do to protect those liberties. … (But) I’ll have to see it in its final form,” the governor said.

In February 2018, she had said she “felt very strongly that we should keep” Iowa’s current gun-permitting law.

Opponents worry that the bill could endanger public safety.