Look, I've been in the gun business long enough to know that anti-gun politicians will try just about anything to keep people from exercising their Second Amendment rights. But what Glendale, California is doing? This is a new low – and that's saying something given how hard the Golden State works to infringe on our freedoms.
Glendale just jacked up their CCW application fee from $100 to $1,078. That's a 1,000 percent increase, folks. But here's the kicker – that's not even the full cost. When you add in the required fingerprints ($150), psych evaluation ($500), and mandatory training ($300-$435), residents are looking at around $2,000 just to apply for a concealed carry permit.
Two thousand dollars. To exercise a fundamental right. That's not a fee – it's a poll tax dressed up in bureaucratic language.
The Supreme Court ruled in Bruen that government can't impose undue burdens on our right to carry, and excessive fees absolutely qualify. Other California counties handle this for far less – San Bernardino charges $90, Riverside just $20 – so Glendale's $1,078 is clearly overkill. There's already a legal challenge to similar fees in Santa Clara County, and Glendale needs to be next.
What's really frustrating is how this punishes everyday folks who just want to protect themselves and their families. The wealthy celebrities in LA can afford $2,000 to exercise their rights, but working-class people in Glendale? They're getting priced out of their own self-defense. That's not accidental – that's the point.
This is exactly why we need to stay engaged and fight these things in court. Our rights aren't for sale, and no city council should be able to put a $2,000 bounty on the Second Amendment. The courts need to step in and shut this down – before every anti-gun city in California gets the same idea.