Just a few questions:
What state are you in?
Is the availability of the training reasonable (days and times available, class sizes, etc.)?
How often are people who attempt to sign up for the training turned down for whatever reason?
How much does the training cost?
How long does the training take to complete?
Is there a written test?
If so, how difficult is it? Is the test graded immediately and handed back so the student knows how they did, why each answer was correct or incorrect, and personally verify that the correct answer was the same for all students?
Is there a practical test?
If so, how difficult is it? Are the criteria for passing very clearly defined, and does the student have the opportunity to see their target so they can personally verify their passing/failing?
Are any statistics available on people who attempt to take the training and are turned down, or attempt to complete the training and fail, especially denial/failure percentages by race?
I think you can all see where I'm going with this. A license is not "shall issue" if the test-givers have any personal discretion whatsoever over who can take the training, and who passes it. A lot of people, me included, are of the opinion that some states' training requirements (not to mention licensing fees in many cases!) are little more than a literacy test, intended solely to prevent certain groups of people from legally carrying concealed. How do the facts stack up against this belief?
What state are you in?
Is the availability of the training reasonable (days and times available, class sizes, etc.)?
How often are people who attempt to sign up for the training turned down for whatever reason?
How much does the training cost?
How long does the training take to complete?
Is there a written test?
If so, how difficult is it? Is the test graded immediately and handed back so the student knows how they did, why each answer was correct or incorrect, and personally verify that the correct answer was the same for all students?
Is there a practical test?
If so, how difficult is it? Are the criteria for passing very clearly defined, and does the student have the opportunity to see their target so they can personally verify their passing/failing?
Are any statistics available on people who attempt to take the training and are turned down, or attempt to complete the training and fail, especially denial/failure percentages by race?
I think you can all see where I'm going with this. A license is not "shall issue" if the test-givers have any personal discretion whatsoever over who can take the training, and who passes it. A lot of people, me included, are of the opinion that some states' training requirements (not to mention licensing fees in many cases!) are little more than a literacy test, intended solely to prevent certain groups of people from legally carrying concealed. How do the facts stack up against this belief?