Just went to renew my ltcf...

[kluge]

...went to the Sheriff's Office in the Chester County Courthouse, told the deputy behind the desk I want to renew my carry permit. I handed him the completed form, $20, and my driver's license (which has my PA ltcf attached to the bottom of it, along with non-resident permits from UT, VA, and NH.)

He starts doing his thing, and then blurts out, "You can't carry in PA with any of these non-resident permits!" I can only assume that his unsolicited advice was due to the fact that he noticed that my PA ltcf would be expiring in 3 weeks, and that my new one wouldn't be arriving in the mail until after that date...

He went on to explain, "People from Philly were coming here to get fingerprinted for their Florida non-res permits, but didn't have one here in PA 'coz they wouldn't pass the local background check. So we called down to FL and asked them about it, and they told us that they were doing background checks so we should stop worrying about it. So a few months ago, we got the law changed so that PA residents without a PA permit can't carry here, even if they have out-of-state non-res permits."

Then he slaps the form on the counter and says, "This is incomplete. You didn't answer question #32." I glance down and see that #32 is:



I read it out loud to him with emphasis on the "IF YOU ARE A RESIDENT OF ANOTHER STATE" bit, and state that as a resident of PA, that question does not apply to me. He responds by shrugging his shoulders and says, "I know, but it's a State-issued form and they say that every question has to be answered. You have to check "YES" and then list the states that you have non-res permits here," and points to the tiny bit of white space to the left of the check boxes.

He then repeats, "You can't carry in PA without a PA carry permit." At this point, my mind is still stuck between, "WTF is going on here?" and "they gave THIS clown a GUN and a badge?" and I just say, "Yeah, read you loud and clear -- I'll just open carry between when it expires and when the new license arrives in the mail..." He opens his mouth to say something, but I quickly add, "...except in Philly."

When it comes time to renew again in five years, I think it'll be easier to just change my residency to another county (or hell, another State.)...

Anyone else run into this kind of stupidity in Chester Co.?

--kluge

[PAMedic=F|A=]

You can also carry for 6 months after your LTCF expires....

And there is no reason he should not have been handing you the License during that conversation...it is just a pics check

[HiredGoon]

Actually you are mostly covered to carry on your expired LTCF for 6 months as long as you are still eligible for a LTCF.

There's that federal school zone carry law though.

[mrjam2jab]

And there is no reason he should not have been handing you the License during that conversation...it is just a pics check

Exactly. Should be issued while you wait.

[ROCK-IT3]

In Schuylkill County, the deputy doing my renewal actually told me that I would be fine carrying concealed, since there is a 6 month "grace period" from the expiration date on the license.

[QuackXP]

I would have answered no, as I am not a resident of another state and left it at that.

Why did you attach other licences/permits to your in state LTCF applicaiton?

As others have said you have 6 months, but you are not exempt from the fed school zone laws.

Also OC without a LTCF works only if you walk everywhere. Transporting a firearm without a LTCF to anywhere but very specific places is illegal.


A little off topic but is it still legal to carry in PA as a PA resident with an out of state licence/permit? I know through reciprocity agreements and more states not issuing out of state licences/permits if you don't have an in state licence/permit its difficult but is it actually illegal?

[gnbrotz]

You can also carry for 6 months after your LTCF expires....

And there is no reason he should not have been handing you the License during that conversation...it is just a pics check

Exactly. Should be issued while you wait.

Not "should". COULD.

The law allows them 45 day to complete the process. Actual processes vary a bit from county to county (do they contact references, etc.). Keep in mind that most counties receive hundreds of these apps a month, and may do the actual PICS checks in batches, at their convenience, in order to foster an efficient workflow.

Be grateful for the counties where you can get it on the spot. Don't bitch about the ones where it takes a couple of weeks. If your looking for a fight, there are plenty to take up where the law is actually being violated.

[Pilot321]

Yeah, they are kind of becoming your typical, government elitist "You can't do that because we are in charge of you" types here in Chester County. Guess it comes from being too close to Philly.

When I renewed my LTCF here, I had to call to get the renewal form because it had not shown up the prior month. Then I had to call again at 45 days after I applied only to be told THREE TIMES that they have 45 days. Then they realized it had been 45 days, and a week or so later I got my renewed LTCF.

The entire process smack of disagreement with the 2A, and they make it seem like they are doing you a favor, and are reluctant at best to comply with the law. The attitude is obvious that they think they should be the only ones to have guns, and we shouldn't.

[Greywolf]

Then he slaps the form on the counter and says, "This is incomplete. You didn't answer question #32." I glance down and see that #32 is:



I read it out loud to him with emphasis on the "IF YOU ARE A RESIDENT OF ANOTHER STATE" bit, and state that as a resident of PA, that question does not apply to me. He responds by shrugging his shoulders and says, "I know, but it's a State-issued form and they say that every question has to be answered. You have to check "YES" and then list the states that you have non-res permits here," and points to the tiny bit of white space to the left of the check boxes.

The advice he gave you is incorrect. That question says "If you are a resident of another state ..." Since there is no check box for "Does not apply," the correct answer is "No," because you are not a resident of another state.

[Greywolf]

And there is no reason he should not have been handing you the License during that conversation...it is just a pics check

Too true.

As I've posted before, my renewal in Bellefont (Centre County) took all of 30 minutes. And that included waiting for the two out-of-staters who were ahead of me as I walked in the door, plus a 10-minute (or so) conversation with Sheriff Nau.

The difference between states is interesting. Supposedly the reason we have to apply and renew in person now is so they can "capture" your photo and signature electronically (digitally). Connecticut has had plastic permits (yes, in CT it's a "permit," don't even go there) for many years. CT now allows us to renew by mail, all you have to do is send in one passport-type photo (which I had taken at AAA). When my new permit arrived, they had magically succeeded in capturing my passport photo digitally, and they just reproduced the digitized signature they already have in their files.

Sheriff Nau explained to me that the biggest headache about the new system is that this digital "capturing" isn't done on-site, it gets sent back to a central computer in Harrisburg. If the link goes down, the county can't issue or renew any licenses until the link comes up again. To a resident, that's a minor inconvenience. To someone from out of state, it can be a major cramp in the tail.