NYC Drops Residency, Social Media Inspection Requirements for Gun Carry Permits

Last updated on August 12th, 2024 at 09:44 am

The New York City government issued a set of emergency rule changes to how it handles concealed carry permits last week, dropping residency and social media inspection requirements.

Until now, New York City hadn’t allowed nonresidents or people without some tie to the city to apply for concealed carry permits. City residents applying for carry permits had to submit all of their current and former social media accounts going back three years for law enforcement scrutiny

Gun owners and gun rights advocacy groups have challenged NYC’s carry restrictions in multiple recent cases. One such challenge, Antonyuk v. James, had advanced through the district and appellate court levels before the gun rights plaintiffs petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case. On Aug. 5, the Supreme Court issued a grant, vacate, remand (GVR) order, upending lower court rulings that had upheld the local carry permitting requirements.

The New York Police Department announced an emergency rule on Aug. 6, dropping the residency and social media inspection requirements. Those seeking a carry permit, regardless of residence must still sit for an in-person interview with a member of the NYPD’s licensing division. Applicants must also include four character references who can attest they’re of good character and unlikely to harm themselves or others. Applicants must also demonstrate they’ve completed an 18-hour concealed carry training course.

Gun rights advocacy groups like the Gun Owners Foundation also celebrated the reversal of what they described as a “blatantly unconstitutional” social media inspection requirement.

MAJOR WIN: The Second Amendment says “shall not be infringed” not “please submit all social media accounts when asking permission to bear arms.” https://t.co/aVqrMtyx0N

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) August 10, 2024

“This is great news for the untold millions of Americans who either work or visit New York every year. It’s critical that everyone can exercise their inherent right to self-defense, but until now, anti-gunners in New York denied most Americans that basic right,” Gun Owners of America senior vice president Erich Pratt said of the rule change.

Still, gun rights activists who helped challenge the NYC rules argued the revisions still leave something to be desired. Where resident carry applicants could more easily book and complete an in-person licensing interview, non-residents may still struggle to find a schedule opening to complete this part of the licensing process.

“We believe that this still infringes upon our rights, and that we should not be required to request permission to obtain new firearms,” the Foundation for a Safer NY, a New York-based gun rights advocacy, said of the emergency rule.

The Foundation for a Safer NY vowed it would continue to challenge the NYC permitting requirements in court.

Pratt said his organization would also monitor the city’s compliance with its stated permitting process “to ensure that NYPD indeed grants these permits to applicants in a timely and non-onerous manner.”