At least 3 groceries opt out of Texas open-carry gun law

Justin Bourke | KENS-TV, San Antonio

Show Caption Hide Caption H-E-B refusing "open carry" inside stores H-E-B refusing "open carry" inside stores

SAN ANTONIO — At least three grocery stores have opted out of Texas' controversial open-carry gun law that will take effect Friday, saying only concealed weapons are allowed in their stores.

The hashtag #GroceriesNotGuns has begun trending on Twitter, fueled by activist groups such as Moms Demand Action. And several gun owners say they don't mind the decisions from H-E-B, which has almost 350 stores in more than 150 Texas communities; and national chains Safeway and Whole Foods.

"I don't know why in a grocery store I would need to open carry," said Leigh Cutter, a San Antonio mother and concealed handgun owner. "As long as I have it on my person, I would be just fine."

H-E-B, with roots in Texas since its founding in 1905, largely has stayed out of the argument, saying in a statement that its rules comply with state regulations because it sells alcoholic beverages.

"As a retailer of alcohol, long guns and unlicensed guns are prohibited on our property under the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission rules," according to the grocer's statement. "H-E-B maintains the same policy we have for years, only concealed licensed handguns are allowed on our property."

On New Year's Day, Texas will become the 45th state to legalize carrying a pistol in plain sight.

The relaxed rules passed the GOP-controlled state Legislature only after police groups defeated a provision backed by an unlikely combination of tea party conservatives and Democrats that sought to bar law enforcement from asking Texas residents whether they had a proper license to carry guns that are visible.

Texas already allows openly carrying rifles and shotguns but has banned having handguns visible since just after the Civil War. It will be the largest state to sanction some form of open carry, with California, Florida, Illinois, New York and South Carolina still banning it.

The Lone Star State had nearly 826,000 concealed license holders in 2014, which ranks among the nation's highest. Openly carrying a gun will require obtaining the same license concealed weapons holders have — be at least 21, have clean criminal and psychology records, complete a training course and pass a shooting test.

Concealed handguns even will be allowed inside the Texas Capitol, where license holders can bypass metal detectors.

"If I get a gun, I guess I'd better put my hands up," state Sen. Rodney Ellis, a Houston Democrat who is black, said when the measure was debated on the Senate floor.

Although police groups lobbied to remove a provision from the bill prohibiting asking residents for their concealed-carry gun license, many law-enforcement agencies said they won't ask to look at the permit of every gun owner who openly carries, instead assuming that they have the proper paperwork.

"People will drive without a license," said Executive Director Charley Wilkison of the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, the state's largest law-enforcement officers' union. "And we can sure count on them to carry a weapon without training or license."

Contributing: The Associated Press. Follow Justin Bourke on Twitter: @JustinBourkeTV