Ill. CWP expected to cost $400-500

Sen. Dan Duffy

There is some serious arm-wrestling going on in Springfield over the court-mandated concealed carry legislation, and gun owners are about to take it on the chin.

Illinois State Sen. Dan Duffy (R-26) posted this on Facebook at about 4:30PM: "Concealed Carry Saga update: A strange collaboration is currently going on in the Capitol. Speaker Madigan’s people, downstate / pro-gun Democrats; Rep. Phelps and Senator Forby, and the NRA are working together to draft a concealed carry bill that, in theory, will be acceptable to all. They are going to use SB2193 as their vehicle bill to insert new language. We’ll see if they can come to terms."

So I took a peek at SB2193. If you have a strong stomach, go to www.ilga.gov  On the left side, enter SB2193. Grab a beer and start reading.

This Bill is designed to prevent many Illinois residents from getting a license. There will be many who cannot afford the license fee and the cost of training. The legislators should be ashamed of themselves.

I'm not sure if we should be thankful that it takes pages and pages to put together a Bill or if we should be kicking and screaming about it. On the one hand, it takes forever to read and understand the entire Bill, and it's easy to miss a key word in a long Bill. On the other hand, perhaps it keeps the legislature from coming up with even more trash.

Here are some general points that I can get out of it on first reading.

If passed, becomes effective immediately.
It applies to concealed carry; not "open" carry.
License period is five years.
ISP must issue or deny within 90 days.
If stopped, licensee must, upon an officer's request, disclose that he is carrying a concealed weapon, present his concealed-carry license, and tell the officer where his weapon is.
Any law enforcement agency can object to the application, but only if it has a reasonable suspicion that the applicant is a danger to himself or others, or a threat to public safety.
A Concealed Carry Licensing Review Board is established. I wonder what they'll earn. You'll be paying for it. Hold on to your seats.
For a non-resident license, pay $300 fee. THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS? My Pennsylvania non-resident permit was $27.00.
A resident's license? $150. What a rip-off! And it's a non-refundable fee.
There are liberal gun-free zones, such as public transportation (including parking areas, which means that commuters can't carry to and from the train station).
The Cook County Forest Preserve District! Guess where the crime rate will go through the roof, as soon the robbers figure out that all the joggers are defenseless?
Any building, real property or parking under control of an airport. Going to Galt Airport? Better leave your gun at home!
There is an exception for parking areas of "prohibited places" that many cops may not be aware of or may overlook.
Training: 16 hours, including range time. Fire on B-27 silhouette target: 5 yds. (10 rounds); 7 yds. (10 rounds); 10 yds. (10 rounds). Hitting the target 70% of the rounds fired. (I didn't see a definition of "target".)

At this point, I was only through the first 36 pages of the Bill. There are 149 pages. What a pile of baloney. Anyone will become a criminal, just because there is so much in this Bill. Is this what intelligent, honest, law-abiding, gun-owning citizens are supposed to swallow?