The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission approved a regulation change Thursday that will allow people to openly carry a handgun for personal protection while on any wildlife management area or commission-controlled property or lake.
Previously, only people with valid concealed carry permits could possess handguns while on a wildlife management area, unless there was a hunting season in which the handgun would be legal.
Concealed carry permit holders may still carry a concealed handgun. Now, anyone legally possessing a handgun on commission owned or controlled property or while hunting, fishing or trapping on private property is OK as long as the handgun is for personal protection. The handgun can’t be used for hunting unless it is a legal killing device for a hunting season that is open.
“This clarification was the result of enforcement and wildlife management staff listening to concerned citizens and working to benefit all parties,” said Col. Greg Rae, chief of the agency’s Enforcement Division.