A bill that was passed by the Iowa Legislature removes the requirement for firearm owners to have a permit to carry.

House District 47 Representative Phil Thompson says the bill not only makes having a permit to carry a firearm optional, it also allows Iowans to carry firearms in other states with removing the resopraicity issue. He points out not having a permit to carry means you are subjected to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) every time you purchase a firearm. 

Thompson says while the process to purchase a firearm privately doesn’t change, the penalty for selling a firearm to someone who isn’t legally able to possess one is increased to a Class D Felony.

“It really does make that risk a lot higher for a seller to encourage them (the purchaser) to go to a registered FFL (Federal Firearms Licensed), a gun store of some kind, and do that transfer. It usually only costs $25. So we’re really incentivising people to go and see their private sales through a licensed dealer.”   

As of last week, Thompson talks about the Iowa Peace Officers Association and the Iowa Reserve Officers and Deputies Association, along with local law enforcement if they support the legislation.

“As a whole, our law enforcement community was registered ‘undecided’ on the bill. They’re really just monitoring it and trying to apply it. But on this particular bill this year I didn’t get to have a conversation with (Greene County) Sheriff (Jack) Williams. There was real no loud voice at the Capitol from the law enforcement community as a whole.”

The Iowa House passed the bill last week and the Senate passed it Monday.