Beginning next week, sheriff’s departments around Missouri will be taking over responsibility of issuing concealed carry weapons (CCW) permits from the Missouri Department of Revenue.
Missouri Sheriffs’ Association Executive Director Michael Covington said sheriffs can choose not to issue permits until Jan. 1, but that would mean citizens of their county would not be able to obtain them because CCW permits must be obtained in a person’s county of residence.
Texas County Sheriff James Sigman said his department is ready to assume the duty.
Beginning next year, all Missouri sheriff’s departments will be required to issue permits to qualifying citizens. State law enforcement officials are planning to provide all sheriff’s departments with $2 million worth of card-making machines and other equipment by Jan. 1. Until then, CCW permits will be issued by way of a printed form provided by the sheriffs’ association.
The changes are the result of the passing of Senate Bill 75, which (among other things) transfers the duties of issuing a CCW permit from Missouri Department of Revenue license offices to sheriffs. The law was created after lawmakers became concerned when a list of permit holders compiled by the Missouri Department of Revenue had been shared with federal investigators.
Despite the short notice and additional duties, officials say most Missouri sheriffs seem comfortable with the relatively sudden changes.
“I think it will be fine,” Sigman said. “I’ll be glad when we get the card machines, but for now we’ll do it on paper until we get the equipment. After the first of the year, people can come back in and be issued a hard card.”
Missouri Sheriffs’ Association Board President Tommy Greenwell said there was some complaining at first, but the legislature has adequately funded the transition, and early anxieties have largely subsided. Greenwell said smaller sheriff’s departments had raised the most concerns, but Sigman said the new system is probably better for local residents.
“I believe it is,” Sigman said. “The information we gather in the process is minimal, but it’s personal information and it ought to be protected. I believe all the sheriffs in the state intend to protect the information, and I’m hoping citizens throughout the state have the confidence that they elected their sheriff and will trust that their information is protected.”
State Representative Robert Ross, a Yukon resident, said he’s glad the change is being made.
“I’m absolutely supportive of it,” Ross said. “We’ve had so much discussion about the Department of Revenue and there are many of us – myself included – who still feel they’ve broken the law by supplying a file of the names of 163,000 law abiding Missourians to the highway patrol, which then passed them on to the social security administration and later on the ATF. They’re allowed to disclose that information as part of a criminal investigation, but it’s used in that context, a person has to ask: who are the criminals they were investigating?
“I think everyone trusts our local sheriffs to manage that data much more than the Department of Revenue. As a representative of a lot of people who hold CCW permits, I don’t have the concern now that that data will be turned over to a federal agency the way it previously was.”
Ross penned House Bill 818, which was added to and passed along with Senate Bill 75. It prohibits the state of Missouri from creating, developing or maintaining a database related to firearms or firearms accessories or assisting the federal government in doing the same.
“We took some important steps to protect the public in light of all that occurred last year,” Ross said.
Under the revised system, permits will now expire after five years instead of three.
Fees in Texas County will remain unchanged. There is a $30.50 fee paid to the Missouri State Highway Patrol for a background check, and the initial permit charge is $50 (half of the maximum amount counties are allowed to charge). Renewals are $35.
Sigman said people seeking CCW permits in Texas County should not anticipate any glitches.
“We’re ready to go with this,” he said.