FORT SMITH (KFSM) - Letting people carry a firearm openly in a holster is once again a hot topic in the Arkansas as state lawmakers convened in Little Rock.
Legislators are looking at bill to clarify whether open carry is legal in Arkansas.
Steve Jones supports letting lawful gun owners carry handguns in holsters.
“Open carry has never been shown to be a safety problem,” Jones said.
Jones said a 2013 law allows open carry, but others have said that law is vague. Lawmakers are hoping to clear up the debate this legislative session.
“The way the law reads now is: a citizen cannot carry a gun if he`s intending to use it unlawfully against another person," Jones said. "Which basically says that if you are not committing a crime you can use a handgun for self-defense purposes."
Some Fort Smith residents said they hope the legislature bans open carry for safety reasons.
"If they are actually just walking around town here that's where I have a problem with it," Travis McDonald said.
Tyler Adamson has worked at the tackle box in Fort Smith for the past four years.
"I think that we should have the right to do it,” Adamson said. “If people want to open carry I don't think it's our legislators right to tell us that we can't, but even that said I wouldn't do it myself."
The 2015 legislature convened this week in Little Rock as a new governor, Asa Hutchinson, was sworn in.