South Dakota Senate Approves Constitutional Carry

A bill to recognize the Second Amendment as the only license needed to carry a concealed handgun in South Dakota passed the state Senate on Tuesday.

The measure, Senate Bill 47, zipped through the chamber’s judiciary committee last week and sailed to an easy 23-11 victory this week in the Republican-controlled body, heading to the state House for further consideration. The move would repeal the requirement that those carrying a concealed pistol or revolver first obtain a license to do so.

“Essentially we’re being asked as law-abiding citizens to go to our county and seek to lease back our constitutionally protected right to bear firearms, and I think that’s inappropriate,” said the bill’s prime sponsor, state Sen. Brock Greenfield, R-Clark.

The legislation would keep in place the current permitting system, which issues five-year licenses for concealed carry for $10. Under its current language, South Dakota law would change to allow concealed carry by those lawfully able to possess a handgun without having to first have a permit. Currently, it is a misdemeanor under state law to carry a concealed handgun without a license. Some 107,172 licenses of all kinds were in circulation in Nov. 2018, the most recent figures available.