South Dakota is preparing to issue an enhanced concealed carry permit in hopes of allowing permit holders to forgo background checks when buying a firearm.
The new permit will be called a “gold card” and acquiring it means “completing an FBI fingerprint background check on top of the standard obligations necessary to get a concealed carry permit.”
According to the Argus Leader, the application fee for the “gold card” will be $70 and it will “[function] as a standard concealed carry permit,” in addition to being a substitute for background checks on gun purchases. State senator Arthur Rusch (R-17) sponsored the “gold card” legislation, saying, “It’s a balancing thing. You want to make sure that we make it as convenient as possible, but that people who shouldn’t have the firearms are not getting them.”
Dakota Territory Gun Collectors Association President Brandon Maddox pushed for the new card, citing benefits for sellers as well as buyers. He pointed out how “background check delays can cause problems for vendors…at gun shows” and said people are eager to get their hands on a concealed carry permit that will eliminate the delays.
South Dakota has filed a request to use the new cards in place of background checks, but the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) will not respond until after the state begins to issue the cards.
AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and host of “Bullets with AWR Hawkins,” a Breitbart News podcast. He is also the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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