This legislation, known as the "National Constitutional Carry Act," seeks to enforce the Second and Fourteenth Amendment rights of U.S. citizens to carry firearms in public. It asserts that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms, including outside the home for self-defense, and that this right is applicable to the States through the Fourteenth Amendment. The bill's findings highlight Supreme Court precedents affirming these rights and argue that many existing state and local gun control laws are inconsistent with this historical tradition. The core provision of the bill amends federal law to prohibit any State or political subdivision from imposing criminal or civil penalties, or otherwise indirectly limiting, the public carrying of firearms by eligible U.S. citizens. This includes preventing financial or other barriers to entry for carrying. Furthermore, any state or local statute, ordinance, or regulation that criminalizes, penalizes, or dissuades such public carry is declared to have no force or effect, with specific definitions provided for "firearm" and "public" spaces.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Crime and Law Enforcement
National Constitutional Carry Act
USA119th CongressS-4013| Senate
| Updated: 3/5/2026
This legislation, known as the "National Constitutional Carry Act," seeks to enforce the Second and Fourteenth Amendment rights of U.S. citizens to carry firearms in public. It asserts that the Second Amendment guarantees an individual right to bear arms, including outside the home for self-defense, and that this right is applicable to the States through the Fourteenth Amendment. The bill's findings highlight Supreme Court precedents affirming these rights and argue that many existing state and local gun control laws are inconsistent with this historical tradition. The core provision of the bill amends federal law to prohibit any State or political subdivision from imposing criminal or civil penalties, or otherwise indirectly limiting, the public carrying of firearms by eligible U.S. citizens. This includes preventing financial or other barriers to entry for carrying. Furthermore, any state or local statute, ordinance, or regulation that criminalizes, penalizes, or dissuades such public carry is declared to have no force or effect, with specific definitions provided for "firearm" and "public" spaces.