Permits to carry concealed or openly displayed firearms will not be automatically granted in Hawaii following a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling as county police departments craft policies for processing applications from gun owners following an opinion by the state Department of the Attorney General.

Gov. David Ige told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser he is “very troubled” by the high court’s decision and asked Attorney General Holly T. Shikada for a formal opinion on how the decision will affect Hawaii gun laws.

”It’s important for people to know that both concealed- and open-carry gun licenses are not automatically granted,” Ige said. “For a concealed-carry license, the applicant must meet all the current requirements in the law but does not have to state he, she has an ‘exceptional case’ or has reason to fear injury to person or property.

“For an open-carry license, the applicant must meet the current requirements of the law, plus show an urgency, or need to carry a firearm and be engaged in the protection of life and property. Public safety is important to us here in Hawaii, and we will continue to enforce our firearms laws, consistent with federal constitutional requirements, to help keep our community safe.”

In a 6-3 decision, the court struck down a New York law that required people to provide a specific need to carry a gun, if they wanted to carry a gun in public. Hawaii has similar restrictions on people seeking to carry a gun in public. County police chiefs have granted four permits to carry a gun in public in the past 22 years. The Supreme Court decision takes away the chiefs’ ability to deny qualified, law-abiding citizens a permit to carry a handgun.

Shikada issued her opinion July 7, explaining what requirements apply to applications to carry a firearm in public under Hawaii’s current statutory regime following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, according to the letter sent to Ige.

Hawaii law permits people to carry a pistol or revolver within a county if they obtain a license from the county’s chief of police, wrote Shikada.

Two types of carry licenses can be issued: A chief of police may issue a concealed-carry license “(in) an exceptional case, when an applicant shows reason to fear injury to the applicant’s person or property,” and satisfies certain other statutory requirements. Also, a chief of police may issue an unconcealed-carry license to an applicant “(w)here the urgency or the need has been sufficiently indicated,” the applicant “is engaged in the protection of life and property,” the applicant is “of good moral character,” and certain other statutory requirements are satisfied, she wrote.

Despite the Supreme Court ruling, police chiefs “can and should” still require that applicants for a concealed-carry license “be qualified to use the firearm in a safe manner,” “not be prohibited … from the ownership or possession of a firearm,” and “not have been adjudged insane or not appear to be mentally deranged.” Applicants should also still “appear to be a suitable person to be so licensed.”

Individuals ineligible for a permit are those with documented incidents and other involvement with alleged domestic violence; careless handling or storage of a firearm; alcohol or drug abuse; violent conduct; felony convictions; or been deemed clinically insane.

County police and lawmakers are still working to establish the forms, policies and processes for applicants trying to be armed in public. People who want a license to carry a gun are already approaching county police departments through established firearm permitting methods. Public safety and ensuring that existing laws are sufficient to keep violent crime down if more guns are being carried around town is the top priority of police and elected officials.

State Sen. Kharl Rhoads, a Democrat and chair of the Senate Committee on Judiciary, told the Star- Advertiser in an interview that the U.S. Supreme Court case is probably going to lead to more cases challenging aspects of states’ gun control laws.

“I don’t really see any conceptual stopping point. Now it’s also possible they may not take another case for 10 years and it will be decided by the circuits for a while,” Rhoads said.

Lawmakers won’t start discussing any new laws resulting from the ruling until the next session in January. Carefully reviewing existing laws, including areas where guns are allowed, will be part of preparing for the next session. Rhoads said he believes exercising the county police departments’ authority to continually check the backgrounds of applicants for firearms would be helpful with the new standards, provided they have the resources to do so.

There is already a list of places in Hawaii where legal firearm owners are prohibited from taking their weapons.

“It ups the ante if you are carrying in public,” Rhoads said. “It’s one thing to have a gun at home. When you allow for carrying in public it really ups the ante so you want to make sure you don’t have anybody out there who’s not eligible.

“There are certainly areas that I think should be excluded, like standing in line to vote for example. I don’t think it’s a good idea to have guns there.”

Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi told the Star- Advertiser he shares Ige’s concerns with the ruling.

“We agree with the state attorney general that there continue to be strong gun control measures in Hawaii and the city and county, including significant restrictions on carrying firearms in public,” Blangiardi said. “While I am disappointed in the Supreme Court’s ruling, we continue to have many tools at our disposal to prevent gun violence in our communities, and we will do everything we can under the rule of law to make sure public safety remains our top priority.”

County police are receiving applications from firearm owners looking to take advantage of the high court decision.

Honolulu police Chief Arthur Logan told the Star-Advertiser in a statement that in light of the Supreme Court’s recent decision, HPD is reviewing its forms and procedures to ensure compliance with both the court’s ruling and those portions of state law that continue to apply to applications for concealed-carry licenses.

“Once the new process is finalized, a letter will be sent to the applicants notifying them of the new procedures,” Logan said.

Since Jan. 1, the department has received 78 applications to carry a firearm in public. Seventy-seven of those applications were submitted between June 23 and Tuesday.

Kauai Police Chief Todd Raybuck told the Star-Advertiser the department has received dozens of inquiries regarding applications to carry a firearm, however no permits in response to the Bruen decision have been issued at this time.

“The county police departments are working with the Hawaii Department of the Attorney General and respective county attorneys in revising the firearms application to carry and permit process to be compliant with the Bruen decision,” Raybuck said. “The Kauai Police Department anticipates the revised firearms application to carry will be available to the public within the next 30 days.

“The public will be notified as soon as the new firearms application to carry permit process is completed. Persons wishing to apply for a permit to carry will be required to submit an application on the revised firearms application for review and consideration.”

On Maui, police have distributed 55 concealed-carry weapon license applications in 2022, according to Alana Pico, information and education specialist for the Maui Police Department. Of those 55 applications, 49 were distributed on or after June 23. Only one application was completed and returned to MPD on Monday and is currently being processed.

“There is a licensing process in place for both concealed- and open-carry gun licenses,” Pico said. “The U.S. Supreme Court and attorney general’s opinions do not require that either of these licenses be automatically granted. Public safety is the Maui Police Department’s primary goal, and we will continue to adhere to all laws to be consistent with federal constitutional requirements. This will help keep our community as safe as possible.”

Hawaii County police Chief Paul Ferreira told the Star-Advertiser that the department continues to tally applications for permits in the new legal environment.

“The Hawaii Police Department, like the other police departments throughout the state, are in the process of reviewing and revising our permitting process for applications for permits to carry concealed, unconcealed (firearms),” he said.