Local law enforcement officials are eying with interest a piece of proposed legislation that, if approved by the Alabama Legislature, would make it legal for some firearms owners to carry concealed weapons without a permit.

A bill sponsored by Alabama Sen. Gerald Allen (R-Tuscaloosa) in this legislative session could dispense with the state’s current statute requiring prospective handgun owners to obtain a permit from their local sheriff’s office in order to legally carry their weapon concealed.

Cullman County Sheriff Matt Gentry, one of the state’s most vocal sheriffs when it comes to supporting 2nd Amendment issues, said the measure wouldn’t do away with the need for sheriff’s offices to issue permits except in certain circumstances.

“This bill would not do away with pistol permits; you could still get pistol permits from the sheriff’s office. It would simply make it so that you could carry concealed without a permit — in Alabama,” Gentry explained. “But, if you were to go that route, you would also lose the reciprocity agreement that we have with several other states who recognize Alabama’s concealed carry law.

“For example, if you don’t obtain a pistol permit under this bill and you decide to concealed carry legally in Alabama without a permit, you would not be able to concealed carry if you cross the state line into Georgia. In order to do that, under this bill, you would still need to go to the sheriff’s office in Alabama and get a pistol permit if you want to have that reciprocity.”

Gentry said the Cullman County Sheriff’s Office currently uses local pistol permitting fees to support three full-time deputy positions at local schools.

“We have eleven school resource officers, and three of those positions are paid out of pistol permit funds,” he said. “I’m very conservative on what I use our pistol permit money for, and I feel the best use of that money is to pay salaries that ensure we have deputies in every school; that we have that protection for our children in Cullman County. That’s a priority for me. I don’t know how other sheriffs use their pistol permit money, but that’s the way I’ve chosen to do it here.”

It’s not clear how greatly Sen. Allen’s proposal would affect pistol permit revenues at the county level statewide, but Gentry said he’s consulted with many avid 2nd Amendment supporters who actually favor obtaining a permit at the sheriff’s office, regardless of whether the bill becomes a law.

There are a couple of reasons for that.

For one thing, many handgun owners value the state-to-state reciprocity that goes along with having a permit. Currently, 23 other U.S. states honor Alabama’s concealed carry law for traveling Alabama residents who possess a locally-obtained permit.

For another, permit holders can take a one-and-done approach to firearm purchases that require background checks through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

“I actually met with an open carry group two weeks ago, and we were talking about that very issue,” said Gentry. “Most of them said they would still get a permit, because they want to be able to go into a gun store and buy a pistol without having to do a separate background check every time. That, and reciprocity, are big things for a lot of people.

“When you hear from people who really follow this type of legislation, what it helps other folks to understand is that, even if this bill passes, you will still have permits. It’s not doing away with permits, and a lot of people will still choose to get permits. It’s a personal choice, and I do support everybody having the ability to make their own personal choice.”

Cullman Police Chief Kenny Culpepper said he opposes the bill, because it could remove a legal tool currently available to police when they encounter compromised individuals who may pose a threat to public safety.

“I do have a very strong opinion against it — at least in this form,” said Culpepper. “In my view, it would make it much less safe for law enforcement officers and for the general public. This is the kind of thing that we deal with every day in law enforcement — people who are often in the very worst situations of their lives, both emotionally and mentally — and introducing the potential for more weapons to be brought into those situations is something I’m not in favor of.

“Some people in law enforcement, like me, are in favor of requiring the pistol permit, because you’ve got some form of screening to try to keep folks who have emotional or mental issues from having legal access to weapons,” he added.

“The counterargument is that they could always go out and get their hands on a firearm, yes, whether they have a permit or not. But law enforcement has a legal means of dealing with that, if we detect it. If a person in that situation doesn’t have a permit, and they have a weapon, right now we have a mechanism in place to arrest them for that. That’s not something I’m in favor of giving up, both for the welfare of law enforcement officers and the welfare of the general public.”