BRANDON CREIGHTON

Texas State Senator

District 4
CONTACT: Eliza Vielma
Eliza.Vielma@senate.state.tx.us

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Senator Creighton On Senate Passage of Open Carry

Senate Bill 17 Strengthens Second Amendment Rights for Texans
AUSTIN -- Today, Senate Bill 17 on Open Carry passed in the Texas Senate by a vote of 20-10. Senator
Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe), co-author of the bill, issued the following statement regarding its
passage:
"Our state is only one of six that doesn't permit their law-abiding citizens to openly carry a handgun in
public under any circumstance. We can carry long rifles and shotguns openly without a permit, yet we
can't openly carry handguns. Texans respect the Second Amendment and deserve much more than the
restrictions New York, Illinois, and California hold on their citizens."
"I'm appreciative of our deliberative floor discussion on open carry. There is a strong sentiment in the
Texas Legislature, and across the state, to strengthen the Second Amendment this session and that is what
we accomplished today with the passage of Senate Bill 17. Today's vote is a victory for Texas and its lawabiding citizens."
S.B. 17, authored by Senator Craig Estes (R-Wichita Falls), would authorize open carry of modern
handguns in Texas by anyone with a license, so long as the handguns are carried in shoulder or belt
holsters. Applicants would have to meet the same requirements that they currently do to obtain a
concealed handgun license.
In the forty-four states that allow some form of open carry, there are two groups: Thirty states allow open
carry without a license. The remaining fourteen allow open carry by people have satisfied a licensing
requirement.
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SENATOR BRANDON CREIGHTON represents District 4, which encompasses Chambers, Jefferson and
parts of Montgomery, Harris, and Galveston Counties. He currently serves on the Senate Committee on
Agriculture, Water and Rural Affairs, the Senate Committee on Criminal Justice, the Senate Committee
on State Affairs, and as the Vice-Chairman of the Senate Committee on Business and Commerce.