Kansas Drops Concealed Carry Permit Fees

Concealed carry licenses are about to become much more affordable in Kansas.

Kansas' Democrat Governor Laura signed the House Substitute for Senate Bill 116 into law Thursday, which passed the Senate with a vote of 27-10 and the House at 86-37 earlier this year.

The move eliminates several fees associated with the issuance and renewal of concealed carry licenses.

Currently, the total fee for a concealed carry license in Kansas is set at $132.50. The bill eliminates $100 from this total, bringing the cost down to $32.50. Additionally, the bill removes a $16 fee paid to the Kansas Department of Revenue for the issuance and renewal of the concealed carry license card. Furthermore, a $25 fee paid to renew the license and a $15 late fee for failure to renew the license are also removed.

The bill was backed by Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, whose office would have previously benefited from the $100 fee.

Per the Kansas Reflector, Kobach “spoke in support of the fee reduction during a March 7 House committee hearing on the bill. One should not have to pay the state a fee in order to exercise a constitutional right. We don't have to buy a license to exercise our right to speak here today. Churchgoers do not pay the state in order to attend church, and lawful gun owners shouldn't have to pay for the privilege of bearing arms in a manner that is the most common way of carrying in the 21st century.”

Kansas State Rifle Association Executive Director Moriah Day told American Liberty News when the bill was introduced that passing the legislation was “imperative … so more law-abiding Kansans can enjoy the benefits of our stellar concealed carry reciprocity with other states.”

Freshman Republican Representative Rebecca Schmoe was a lead sponsor of the legislation and made her name well-known within the Second Amendment community as a freedom-loving activist before she was elected to office last fall.

Schmoe told American Liberty News that she hopes to see others stepping up to fight for freedom at all levels, offering some advice for those looking to take a path similar to her own:

Being a state legislator is no joke. It's long days, short nights, constant discerning of information and motivation, and a massive responsibility to your constituents for little pay. Yet, the reward is the defense of liberty at the law making level. 90% of a legislators job is standing against unconstitutional laws. 10% of the time you get to pass legislation which restores liberty or at the very least pass laws which take a step in the right direction to restoring liberty.

Some are content with cheering and jeering from the sidelines, but it will always be the players on the field who win the game.

Having strong, time tested, Second Amendment Advocates in elected positions means that every “shall” and “may,” every comma placement, and every hint of intent to whom the law applies, is scrutinized and weighed against individual liberty. If you want lawmakers who will stand in the gap to defend your constitutionally enumerated inherent right to exercise your individual liberty, those who actively and unabashedly defend the Second do so in order to ensure that we are able to effectively defend every other right.

The National Rifle Association (NRA) also added that “reducing the fee ensures that the permit, and the benefits that it confers in exercising Second Amendment rights, are more accessible to law-abiding citizens of less financial means” in a media release issued Friday.

Kansas is now the second state in the country to take this additional step to secure the Second Amendment rights of its residents. South Dakota Governor Kirsti Noem signed similar legislation in her own state last year.

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