Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) has introduced a bill to make “constitutional carry” legal in all 50 states. Given that Republicans will control both the House and Senate as well as the White House starting in January, there has never been a better opportunity to try to restore the Second Amendment in the United States.

As it currently stands, we have dozens of different versions of the Second Amendment in operation in the US. Despite the plain, simple language of the amendment, the rights of gun owners are extremely different between states like California and Idaho. This is schizophrenic from a legal standpoint. Imagine having freedom of speech in one state and being required to purchase a license to speak in another.

Massie’s bill, HR 9534, does not seek to put a band-aid on the problem by creating concealed carry reciprocity between states. Instead, the bill would outlaw states from passing laws or regulations that impede an American citizen’s right to lawfully carry a firearm in public places.

This includes abolishing all laws that allow for a concealed carry permit. If it’s legal for you to own a firearm, you would be able to carry it whether you live in New York or Oklahoma, or if you drive through any states between the two. No permit should be required to exercise a constitutionally protected right.

“I’m fortunate to live in a state where people are free to exercise their right to keep and bear arms without begging the government or paying a fee,” noted Rep. Massie. “Unfortunately, not every American enjoys the same right to carry firearms in public.”

If it becomes law, the National Constitutional Carry Act will apply in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, Washington, DC, and every US territory.