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New York restaurants are adapting to a new set of regulations that govern when and where consumers can carry a handgun while dining.
As of September 1, venues that do not sell alcoholic beverages can allow patrons to carry a gun while visiting by expressly granting permission via a posted sign or a verbal green light from management. Only customers with a state concealed carry permit may bring the firearm with them.
Firearms remain prohibited in any establishment that sells beer, wine or liquor.
They are also prohibited from entering “sensitive places” where weapons have caused extraordinary damage in the past, such as schools, places of worship, airports, hospitals, parks, places of entertainment and transportation facilities including the New York City Subway.
The city’s Times Square area has also been designated as a gun-free zone due to its high volume of traffic and tourism.
Establishments have the option of prohibiting the concealed carry of a firearm on their premises by posting a sign stating that firearms are prohibited.
Assault weapons such as semi-automatic rifles remain prohibited in public spaces.
The new regulations are the result of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down a century-old state law governing the possession of concealed firearms. The law required anyone wishing to carry a handgun outside their home or workplace to prove they needed to be armed.
The Court struck down this measure as a violation of the Second Amendment to the US Constitution.
State officials responded by passing a new law stipulating the conditions under which a person with a concealed carry permit may have their gun with them.
It also set new standards for licensing, including requiring applicants to complete 18 hours of training, listing their social media accounts for the past three years, disclosing who another resides in his home and submits to an interview.
The licensing process and rules for someone who wants to keep a firearm in their home or business remain unchanged.
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