BATON ROUGE, La. – Today, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) announced that Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry has signed FPC-supported House Bill 407, which repeals residency restrictions and expands access to the right to bear arms in the state. HB 407 is a legislative response to an FPC right-to-carry lawsuit, Mate v. Wescott, that was filed as part of FPC’s work to eliminate unconstitutional residency requirements throughout the United States.

“On behalf of our members, we thank Rep. Ventrella for her leadership on this important issue and Gov. Landry for signing this bill into law,” said FPC President Brandon Combs. “We are thrilled that Louisiana has made this critical change to improve access to the right to bear arms. We and our members are working to unlock the right to carry throughout the United States, and this bill helps do just that.

“Now it’s time for Congress to fix and pass H.R. 38 so that all Americans can exercise their right to bear arms without fear of arrest and prosecution.”

Under HB 407, residents of any state will be able to acquire a Louisiana carry license and lawfully exercise their right to bear arms..

Under HB 407, residents of any state will be able to acquire a Louisiana carry license and lawfully exercise their right to bear arms in the Pelican State without violating its “firearm-free zone” restrictions or the federal prohibition on possession of firearms in a “school zone.” Under federal law, a person must be “licensed to [carry] by the State in which the school zone is located” in order to avoid serious criminal liability for walking or driving armed within 1,000 feet of an unmarked ‘zone’.

While FPC strongly believes that no peaceable person should have to acquire a permit to exercise their natural right to keep and bear arms—and that such requirements are unconstitutional and immoral—we recognize that, unless and until state and federal laws such as those at issue here are repealed (or preempted by strong national reciprocity statutes), having a carry license issued by every state in which a person carries a firearm for self-defense is the only mechanism by which a person can lawfully exercise that right in the United States at this time.

FPC encourages gun owners to contact Rep. Ventrella and thank her for her leadership on HB 407 here, and thank Gov. Landry for signing the bill here.

FPC also encourages gun owners to contact Congress and urge them to fix and pass H.R. 38.

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Firearms Policy Coalition

Firearms Policy Coalition (firearmspolicy.org), a 501(c)4 nonprofit membership organization, exists to create a world of maximal human liberty, defend constitutional rights, advance individual liberty, and restore freedom. We work to achieve our strategic objectives through litigation, research, scholarly publications, amicus briefing, legislative and regulatory action, grassroots activism, education, outreach, and other programs. Our FPC Law program is the nation’s preeminent legal action initiative focused on restoring the right to keep and bear arms throughout the United States. Individuals who want to support FPC’s work to eliminate unconstitutional laws can join the FPC Grassroots Army at JoinFPC.org or make a donation at firearmspolicy.org/donate. For more on FPC’s lawsuits and other pro-Second Amendment initiatives, visit FPCLegal.org and follow FPC on Instagram, X (Twitter), Facebook, and YouTube.