NY Bill Will Ban Guns In Times Square After Supreme Court Ruling

NEW YORK CITY — Times Square won't turn into a gun-friendly zone even after a recent Supreme Court decision curtailed the state's ability to restrict concealed carry firearms, according to the text of a new bill lawmakers are poised to pass.

Gov. Kathy Hochul early Friday released the text of a gun safety bill hashed out with lawmakers that bans firearms in Times Square, in addition to a long list of "sensitive locations" such as public transit, schools, parks and places of worship.

The bill is a direct response to a recent Supreme Court decision that curtailed the state's ability to restrict concealed carry permits.

Hochul and New York lawmakers struck a deal on the bill — as well as a resolution to enshrine abortion rights in the state's constitution — as they labored in a so-called "extraordinary session" in Albany. She issued a proclamation early Friday that declaring that equal rights will be added to the session.

“We will enact legislation to strengthen our laws on concealed carry weapons, and building on our nation-leading protections for abortion patients and providers, New York State will take an unprecedented step toward enshrining the fundamental right to abortion access into our State Constitution," she said in a statement.

Many lawmakers and state leaders, especially in New York City, have decried two recent Supreme Court decisions that respectively struck down Roe v. Wade and curtailed the state's ability to restrict where people can carry handguns.

Even before the rulings came down, Hochul and other state leaders took steps to establish New York as a national "safe harbor" for abortion access.

And Mayor Eric Adams warned that the gun ruling could turn the city into the "wild, wild West."

Hochul, in a statement early Friday, called the rulings "reckless" and signaled that lawmakers were working to protect New Yorkers.

The gun bill will require at least 16 hours of training for concealed carry applicants. It also states applicants can be denied if they have been charged with assault, menacing or drunken driving within the past five years.

State Sen. Bray Hoylman praised the gun bill deal for addressing his concerns about Times Square, "one of the most visited tourist sites on the planet."

"It’s crucial to the recovery of our local economy, including Broadway, that Times Square be a gun-free zone and that its 50 million annual visitors feel safe from the dangers of gun violence," he said in a statement.