Under legislation filed by Johnson and U.S. Reps. Bobby Schilling of Colona, Aaron Schock of Peoria, Adam Kinzinger of Manteno and Randy Hultgren of Winfield, an Illinois resident could obtain a concealed carry permit in another state after undergoing the
Five Republican congressmen from Illinois have signed on to an effort to allow residents in their home state to legally carry concealed weapons.
The push, led by U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson of Urbana, would end Illinois' status as the lone state in the nation that doesn't allow citizens to carry concealed firearms in public.
Under legislation filed by Johnson and U.S. Reps. Bobby Schilling of Colona, Aaron Schock of Peoria, Adam Kinzinger of Manteno and Randy Hultgren of Winfield, an Illinois resident could obtain a concealed carry permit in another state after undergoing the requisite background checks and safety training required under that state's laws.
They could then use that permit in Illinois as part of the National Right-to-Carry Reciprocity Act of 2011. The change also would affect residents of Washington D.C., where concealed carry also is not permitted. A vote could come as early as Tuesday.
"This legislation gives me the opportunity to correct a longstanding flaw in Illinois law," said Johnson, who is running for re-election in a newly configured 13th Congressional District that stretches from Bloomington-Normal to Madison County and includes all or parts of Decatur and Springfield.
The move comes as state-level efforts to legalize concealed carry have repeatedly stalled in the Illinois General Assembly. A lawsuit seeking to override the state's ban is pending in U.S. District Court in Springfield.
The Illinois Campaign To Prevent Gun Violence is among groups opposed to the proposal.
"This just seems like an end-run to override the Illinois General Assembly," said the group's director, Mark Walsh.
Johnson said the right to carry a concealed handgun is an individual American right expressed in the Constitution and "not a right to be abridged at the whim of the state."
Johnson, a former state lawmaker who was first elected to Congress in 2000, is unopposed in the GOP primary for the 13th district. On the Democrat side, David Gill of Bloomington supports concealed carry laws. Greene County State's Attorney Matt Goetten, who recently announced a bid for the Democratic nomination, did not immediately respond to a request for his position on the issue.
