Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa (D-Texas) cannot repeal Texas’ constitutional carry law by executive order. Changing it would require legislative action, and any replacement would still face state and federal constitutional limits.
That distinction matters after voters elected Democrats to several statewide offices Tuesday, including governor and lieutenant governor, as previously reported by The Dallas Express. Republicans retained a majority in the Texas Senate.
Hinojosa opposed constitutional carry in a New Yorker interview published October 21, saying “people should have a background check to carry a gun.”
Texas’ 2021 law removed the carry-license requirement for eligible adults while preserving prohibitions on firearm possession. The legislation expressly stated that people prohibited from possessing firearms under state or federal law would not gain the right to possess or carry one.
For constitutional carry supporters, the central objection to licensing concerns government permission to exercise a protected right. Gun Owners of America, which supported HB 1927, stated in its 2021 guidance: “Texans shouldn’t have to ask the state for permission to exercise their right to carry a handgun.” The group also argued that licensing forces lawful gun owners to wait for approval before carrying for self-defense.
Federal background-check requirements for purchases from licensed dealers remain in place, subject to statutory exceptions. Requiring a check before public carry would impose a separate condition on carrying a handgun.
What the 2021 law changed
Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) signed House Bill 1927 on June 16, 2021. It took effect September 1, 2021, allowing eligible adults to carry handguns in most public places without obtaining a state License to Carry.
Firearms Policy Coalition President Brandon Combs described HB 1927 as “restoring a more robust right to bear arms” in a statement issued when Abbott signed the law in 2021.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, constitutional carry, also called permitless carry, covers concealed handguns and openly carried handguns in holsters. It does not authorize prohibited people to possess firearms or eliminate restrictions on where they may carry.
The written statute lists 21 as the general minimum age. Following a 2022 federal court decision, the Texas Department of Public Safety says it no longer denies otherwise eligible 18- to 20-year-old applicants a handgun license solely because of their age.
Texas also kept its licensing program. The department continues to process applications and conduct background checks, and licenses provide benefits including recognition in states that accept Texas licenses.
What a repeal would require
Lawmakers could amend current carry statutes to require a license for public handgun carry again. Any bill would have to clear the House and Senate and complete the governor’s approval process. Restoring a permit requirement would not, by itself, ban firearm ownership.
A Republican majority voting against repeal could defeat it in the Senate. The lieutenant governor presides over that chamber, but that office cannot enact laws in place of senators. Each chamber also sets its own rules.
Even if a governor calls a special session on carry laws, lawmakers would still have to pass a bill. A special-session proclamation does not repeal existing law.
What the constitutions protect
Texas’ 2021 constitutional carry law removed the licensing requirement for eligible adults carrying handguns. Article I, Section 23 protects the right to keep and bear arms while recognizing legislative authority to regulate the carrying of arms. Any new restrictions would still have to comply with state and federal constitutional protections.
Changing the permitless carry law would not require a vote to amend the Texas Constitution. Amending the constitution itself requires approval from two-thirds of each legislative chamber and a majority of votes cast on the amendment.
Federal protections also remain. In its 2022 Bruen decision, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized the right to carry handguns in public for self-defense and struck down New York’s requirement to show a special need for a license. When the Second Amendment’s text covers conduct, Bruen requires the government to justify a restriction by showing consistency with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.
However, the court did not declare all licensing requirements unconstitutional. It distinguished objective permit standards from New York’s discretionary system and warned that excessive fees or long delays could still violate the Second Amendment.
What changes now
Tuesday’s election did not change Texas’ carry statutes or eliminate existing licenses. Any new law would need an effective date, and courts could review a constitutional challenge.
Lawmakers can begin filing bills November 9, and the 90th Legislature convenes January 12, 2027, according to the Texas Legislative Council’s calendar.
