Article 1, § 23 of the Texas Constitution states: "Every citizen shall have the right to keep and bear arms in the lawful defense of himself or the State. As of 2021, people who qualify under the law can carry a handgun in a public place in Texas without a license to carry (LTC).The right to bear arms is essential to freedom. For it is the policy of governments to disarm the people, that they may have the opportunity to oppress them. Federal courts are more protective of Second Amendment Rights in the wake of a 2022 Supreme Court decision. Dec. Texas gun laws: US Judge David Counts rules that people under felony indictment have right to buy guns under Second Amendment ABC13 Houston. Expanding background checks to include strangertostranger gun sales is one of dozens of steps we are looking at to reduce shootings. Governor Greg Abbott signed seven pieces of legislation into law to protect Second Amendment Rights in Texas on June 21, 2021. "We won't let that happen in Texas," Abbott said. "Last session, I signed 10 laws to protect gun rights in Texas.