RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina’s Democratic Gov. Josh Stein vetoed a bill Friday that would get rid of the law requiring permits to carry concealed handguns.

The measure now goes back to the Republican-controlled General Assembly, which could hold veto override votes in an attempt to overturn Stein’s move. But right now, they don’t have the votes.

“This bill makes North Carolinians less safe and undermines responsible gun ownership. Therefore, I am vetoing it,” Stein said in an emailed statement on Friday.

Republicans have a veto-proof supermajority in the Senate, but are one vote short of total control in the House. And two Republicans voted against the measure when it passed the House, with another 10 Republicans absent. All Democrats voted against the bill that would legalize permitless concealed carry.

The law now requires concealed carry permits for those age 21 and older, along with firearms safety training and a background check. “Freedom to Carry NC,” Senate Bill 50, would allow anyone age 18 and older to carry a concealed handgun.

“Authorizing teenagers to carry a concealed weapon with no training whatsoever is dangerous,” Stein said.

“The bill would also make the job of a law enforcement officer more difficult and less safe. We can and should protect the right to bear arms without recklessly endangering law enforcement officers and our people,” he said.

Stein’s move had been expected. And House Speaker Destin Hall acknowledged to reporters after the House vote that the math doesn’t add up to make the bill become law over Stein’s objections. That assumes all lawmakers are present when an override vote is held. A three-fifths majority is required to override a veto.

Republican Reps. Ted Davis and William Brisson opposed the measure when the bill went through committee, as well as on the floor.

Other gun legislation

This isn’t the only gun bill making its way to Stein’s desk this session.

A bill moving ahead in the Senate would allow some employees and volunteers at private schools to carry firearms and stun guns, provided they have the approval of the school’s governing board.

Other criteria include having a concealed carry gun permit and at least eight hours of firearms safety training.

The Republican bill sponsor, state Rep. Jeff McNeely, said during a hearing on Thursday that some private schools at churches are very small and don’t have the funding to hire law enforcement officers. House Bill 193, if it becomes law, would allow people there to “have the ability to be able to protect yourselves in case something horrible should go wrong, and there should be any kind of a threat to their school or to their students.”

Democrats opposed the bill, including the requirement of only eight hours of training, noting that law enforcement officers have hundreds of hours of training.

Becky Ceartas, executive director of North Carolinians Against Gun Violence, told The N&O that it would mean a person with written permission from the school leaders would be “carrying a hidden loaded weapon around our children.”

She expressed concerns about law enforcement being able to discern if they are the “good guy” with a gun vs. the “bad guy with a gun,” as well as the lack of significant training.

That bill passed the Senate Judiciary Committee and goes now to the Senate Rules Committee, the final stop before a floor vote.

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