Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act

The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA) of 2004 amended the federal law to authorize qualified law enforcement officers or qualified retired law enforcement officers who carry photographic identification issued by their governmental agency, notwithstanding any other provision of law to carry a concealed firearm. The federal law provides this authorization shall not supersede state laws that: (1) permit private entities to prohibit the possession of concealed firearms on their property; or (2) prohibit the possession of firearms on state or local government property. The law also excludes any machine gun, firearm silencer, or destructive device from the definition of "firearm". Click here to view the Enrolled Act.

The LEOSA was amended in 2010 to extend the coverage to include law enforcement officers of Amtrak Police, Federal Reserve Police and law enforcement officers of the executive branch of the federal government, along with military law enforcement personnel. The aggregate years retired officers was reduced from fifteen to ten. Click here to view the 2010 amendment.

The LEOSA was further amended in 2013 to clarify the definition of "qualified active" and "qualified retired" law enforcement officer, along with the term "police officer", expanding the powers of arrest requirement definition to include those who have or had the authority to "apprehend" suspects under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Click here to view the 2013 amendment.