HUNTINGTON -- Gun rights advocates are turning their attention to the state level after this week's defeat of a bill in the U.S. Senate.

The West Virginia Citizens Defense League issued a press release pushing the state Legislature to reform its concealed weapon reciprocity law. The group views the state law as restrictive with unnecessary legal impediments to establishing reciprocity with other states.

Reciprocity agreements allow state residents to carry their concealed weapons into other states. West Virginia permits are currently recognized in 23 states, including each of its neighbors except Maryland.

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday rejected a proposal to let people carry hidden guns in 48 states, if they have a concealed weapon permit in any one of them. It was viewed as a rare victory for gun control advocates in a Democratic-controlled Congress that has been friendly to the gun lobby.

Opponents of the movements said it would force states with tough concealed weapon permit restrictions to let in gun carriers from states that give permits to convicted criminals, minors and people with no firearms training.

A majority of the Senate, in a 58-39 vote, supported the measure, which would require most states to honor the concealed weapons permits issued by other states. But the tally was two votes short of the 60 votes needed to add the measure as an amendment to a defense bill.

The Defense League's release states West Virginia is one of only three states that require other states to have a centralized computer database for the purpose of providing instantaneous license verification to law-enforcement officers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The group said other state reciprocity laws take out-of-state licenses at face value.

The Defense League also criticized West Virginia for being one of two states whose reciprocity law requires other states to enter into a formal, written reciprocity agreement as a condition of that state's licenses being recognized, the release states.

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