Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay today announced that he and members of the Minority Conference have filed paperwork to join the ongoing legal challenge to the severely-flawed Concealed Carry Improvement Act (CCIA).

Last week, the Minority Assembly members filed an amicus brief in the matter of Antonyuk v. Nigrelli which stands before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The brief supports the position that restrictions imposed by the CCIA infringe upon the rights of citizens and violate the First and Second Amendments.

“New York Majority lawmakers willfully disregard our constitution and infringe on the rights of citizens whenever it supports their political agenda,” Leader Barclay said. “The Concealed Carry Improvement Act was a hastily-enacted publicity maneuver that tears down basic constitutional rights while doing nothing to prevent gun crimes. The governor even admitted she has no data that supports the need for it. I’m confident this law will be struck down. Our focus should be on attacking gun violence instead of attacking gun ownership.” 

The CCIA, passed during an extraordinary session of the Legislature and signed into law on July 1, 2022, imposed a wide range of questionable requirements and restrictions on legal gun permit holders.