Will Florida Lawmakers Weaken Open Carry Decision?

Now that Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has declared that an appellate court’s decision overturning the state’s ban on open carry applies statewide, Second Amendment advocate are rightfully cheering… but they’re also expressing concern that the decision could be weakened by lawmakers in Tallahassee next year. 

Florida Gun Rights’ Logan Edge told the Florida Phoenix that the legislature “remains a hostile opponent against gun rights”, adding that the group “will make sure every Tallahassee legislator hears from gun rights activists and oppose any effort to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.”

Gun Owners of America’s Luis Valdes, echoed Edge’s concerns, telling the Phoenix that GOA is “extremely proud of this court victory finally securing our Second Amendment rights and we want to make sure that Florida does not go through the same issues that happened in New York after their win with the Bruen decision.” 

In the wake of the Bruen decision, lawmakers in New York and other blue states adopted laws that weakened the impact of the ruling, and Valdes says GOA wants to ensure that doesn’t happen in Florida when the 2026 session kicks off in a few months. 

What some gun rights group don’t want the Legislature to do in any implementing bill is to include what are known as holster retention levels for individuals carrying firearms on their person — they want no restrictions at all. There are four levels of restraint or retention, according to concealedcarry-ed.

• Level 1 – holsters keep the gun in the holster through friction only.
• Level 2 – holsters use friction plus an additional restraint. This restraint could be a thumb strap, a flip-up strap, an automatic lock, or some other device.
• Level 3 – holsters use friction plus two additional restraints.
• Level 4 – holsters use friction plus three additional restraints.

Valdes knows Florida politics better than I do, but it seems to me that the biggest problem in the state legislature over the past few years has been the refusal of Senate leadership to consider pro-2A bills, not the Republican-dominated legislature adopting new gun control laws. We definitely saw that in the wake of the Parkland shootings in 2018, and I’m not saying it couldn’t happen again, but the primary challenge that Second Amendment advocates have recently faced has been Senate President Ben Albritton and his predecessor Kathleen Passidomo. Despite broad support in the Florida House, Albritton and Passidomo balked at bringing bills repealing the open carry ban and the state’s prohibition on gun sales to adults younger than 21 to the Senate floor. 

Now that Uthmeieir has said open carry is the law of the land, though, Republicans who are squishy on Second Amendment issues may very well try to impose new restrictions on the practice. I suspect that the House wouldn’t pass a bill like that, but Florida gun owners shouldn’t take anything for granted. If leadership starts twisting arms in an attempt to force rank-and-file legislators to fall in line behind a bill imposing additional requirements on open carry, anything can happen. The best way to ensure that the court victory translates into good legislation is to get engaged with lawmakers now, so they understand that any attempt to weaken the court’s decision will come with consequences at the ballot box next year.  

Editor’s Note: While most Republicans across the country are doing everything they can to protect our Second Amendment rights and right to self-defense, we still have to be vigilant in defense of our liberties.

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