Tex. after-disaster gun-carry law

Packing a hurricane survival kit? Make sure to bring water, food, flashlights, batteries and ... guns?

Texas is about to legalize open carry of firearms for a week after a natural disaster.

State lawmakers narrowly passed a bill Sunday that would allow licensed gun owners to carry their weapons — open or concealed — for seven days during a state of emergency. The change would even apply to bars and shelters if the operators of those premises choose to authorize the practice.

Supporters argue it provides clarity for lawful gun owners evacuating their homes during a natural disaster.

“Texans should have the ability to take certain firearms with them in a mandatory evacuation without fear of breaking the law or being forced to leave handguns behind in vehicles or homes, where they could be at risk from looters,” lawmakers in favor of the proposal said in a statement.

Opponents say the bill would pose a public safety concern and place an added burden on first-responders.

“It is not solving a problem. It is creating a problem,” state Sen. Joan Huffman, one of the few Republicans who opposed the legislation, said before the vote. “Instead of having to deal with rescuing people or helping people, they’re going to have to deal with this situation of how to confront someone who’s walking around with a gun.”

The proposal, approved in the state Senate by a vote of 16-15, now heads to the governor’s desk.

One of the sponsors of the bill, state Sen. Brandon Creighton, said the seven-day exemption is needed because parts of Texas were under a state of emergency for as many as five days when Hurricane Harvey ripped through the region in 2017.

Currently, Texans are not allowed to carry a firearm in public or have it in plain view in their vehicle unless they have a license to carry and do so in a shoulder or belt holster. It is also a crime in that state to carry a handgun on certain premises, such as churches, schools and hospitals.