Firearms News, the trusted authority for firearms enthusiasts for over 80 years, has released an alarming special report from News Field Editor Darwin Nercesian that details recent happenings in the Ohio legislature that threaten Concealed Carry and the Second Amendment. Even more concerning, this type of obstructive legislative behavior isn't limited to the Buckeye State.
"The Ohio House of Representatives Republican supermajority voted with every Democrat in the chamber on June 10, 2026, to kill the Freedom to Carry Act," writes Nercesian, "a measure to restore Second Amendment rights that should never have been infringed upon in the first place. The bill was not controversial, the vote was not close, and the betrayal was deliberate. You need not be an Ohio resident, however, to be affected by what you're about to read, because obstruction of the people's will remains consistent in legislatures across the United States and in our nation's capital, and the pattern of behavior is one that should concern all Americans."
According to Nercesian, the House Bill 495, Freedom to Carry Act, which was introduced last October by Representative Jennifer Gross – a 21-year veteran and retired Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force – was narrow in purpose and grounded in the plain text of the Second Amendment. "Ohio's existing concealed handgun license restricts the licensee to carrying a handgun," Nercesian continued. "The Freedom to Carry Act proposed renaming it as a concealed-weapons license and extending its protections to other lawfully owned weapons. Citizens who had already cleared Ohio's licensing requirements – background checks, training, fees – would be permitted to carry weapons that the license should have recognized from the outset. The Freedom to Carry Act is not a challenge to any existing law, but a correction to an artificial infringement imposed on law-abiding citizens who already exercise their right to keep and bear arms through the state's own permitting process, although the Second Amendment is all the permit any American should ever need."
"I really appreciate Darwin Nercesian's hard work, attention to detail, and relentless pursuit of Ohio's House Bill 495, the Freedom to Carry Act," said Editor-in-Chief Vincent L. DeNiro. "Following the often drawn out and confusing legislative process is no easy task, nor is holding those who killed the Freedom to Carry Act responsible – that's up to Ohio's voters. Thankfully, we've got the complete story and the names of those who voted against House Bill 495, and we expect their constituents to make them pay at the ballot box."
For the full story, go to "Ohio House Republicans Kill the Freedom to Carry Act - Remember Their Names!" and watch for the October issue of Firearms News, on sale Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026.
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