Florida's Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the state's House Bill 543 into law, which lawmakers say will allow residents to carry a concealed firearm without obtaining a permit from the state.
The law will go into effect on July 1, 2023 and will put Florida into a group of around 25 states that have enacted similar legislation.
While the White House accused the governor of signing the bill "behind closed doors," the governor's office released a statement on the move and a photo of the signing to the public.
The White House called the legislation "shameful," noting how soon its ratification came after a shooter entered a Nashville school and fired 152 rounds of ammunition, Scripps News Nashville reported. Three 9-year-old students and three adults were killed before Tennessee police fired nine rounds to kill the shooter.
In 2021, Tennessee passed similar legislation allowing those 21 and older to carry a concealed firearm without a permit.
The Florida law will allow anyone in the state who can legally own a firearm to carry one without a permit.
Training and background checks will not be required to carry a firearm in public. A background check and a three-day waiting period will still be required for someone to purchase a gun from a state licensed dealer. The requirements will not be in place for private deals or weapons exchanges.
Around 3 million people in Florida have a concealed weapons permit.
Those in agreement with the legislation say it will strengthen Second Amendment rights for residents.
Those in opposition to the legislation in Florida say it will make the state more dangerous, pointing to shootings in recent years in Florida like the mass shooting in 2018 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and the 2016 Pulse Nightclub mass shooting in Orlando.
The White House called the legislation "the opposite of common sense gun safety."
Scripps News Tallahassee reported that Florida State Attorney Jack Campbell called the law a "nightmare scenario."
Campbell said he worries the law will lead to more mass shootings.
He said, "I understand what they're trying to do, I'm just having so much gun violence in this community that I've got to try to stop it down. I want to make sure law enforcement is safe."
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