I’m okay with the idea of a permit process, but it has to be reasonable. What we deal with in New York, especially NYC, is anything but reasonable. You’re talking about a $340 application fee, another $85 for fingerprints, and then sitting around for six months to a year waiting for someone to process the paperwork. And that’s for people who already passed background checks, training, interviews, and every other hoop NY or NYC throws in front of us.
I am ok with states wanting to keep a permitting structure. But it should look like the systems in New Hampshire, Maine, PA, NJ, FL, UT, not the NY model where the process itself becomes a barrier. That’s exactly why national reciprocity makes sense. If the state is going to force us through a long, expensive permit process, the least they can do is make sure that permit actually means something when we travel.
