COLUMBUS – State Rep. Kris Jordan (R-Ostrander) on Thursday provided an update on legislation he recently introduced, House Bill 227. The bill would create a two-tiered system for the concealed carry of firearms for lawful purposes in Ohio.

“House Bill 227 is based on House Bill 178 from the 133rd General Assembly, but it takes things one step further to protect the fundamental and constitutional rights of all Ohioans to keep and bear arms,” Jordan said. “Law-abiding citizens who exercise their Second Amendment rights are some of the finest citizens in the state of Ohio. Legislation like House Bill 227 would allow Ohio to take the much needed next step in defending the Second Amendment at the state level.”

The proposed legislation would rename the Concealed Handgun License (CHL) system to a Concealed Weapons License (CWL) and expand the variety of self-defense tools that Ohioans may wear a coat over. The legislation also would make CWL optional.

Jordan explained, “If an Ohioans wants to obtain a license for reciprocity purposes, they will continue being able to do so as the current ‘shall issue’ law would remain unchanged. However, they would not be required to.”

According to Jordan, constitutional carry laws are being enacted in more and more states across the country and have widespread support in the gun rights community, and there are currently 19 state that have a version of constitutional carry legislation on the books.

“We have seen that in states that have relaxed carry laws, more law-abiding gun owners are seeking training and obtaining a license after the license became option rather than when it was mandated by the government,” said Jordan.

House Bill 227 will continue to have hearings in the House Government Oversight Committee.