Handgun permit fees change for Hoosiers

State House bill allows Indiana residents to receive a lifetime handgun license effective July 1.

While Greencastle Police Department and the Putnam County Sheriff Dept. learned of the changes from the Indiana State Police Supt. Paul Whitesell last week, it is still all new to them.

According to the bill, those wanting a lifetime handgun license are required to pay a certain fee amount even if they do currently possess a valid licenses, and whether or not they use the handgun for personal protection or target and hunting.

The fee for a person applying for a lifetime personal protection permit without a current validated license is $125, The fee for a person applying for the lifetime license who now has a valid permit is $100.

Whitesell sent a memo to all Indiana law enforcement agencies informing them of the changes to not only the fees, but application process as well. In the memo, Whitesell said that applicants must complete the current handgun license application with two exceptions. One exception is to disregard the box containing the type of license being sought, and the second is disregard the fingerprint section on the back of the application.

Applicants will fill out their license choice on the "Supplement Application for Handgun License," which is being used in conjunction the current application. Applicants will also have to provide a full set of fingerprints that will go on a blue-colored FBI Applicant Fingerprint Card.

Both applications, the fingerprint card and the fees in the form of money orders or certified checks must be mailed to the ISP Firearms Section.

Each law enforcement agency that processes this application will retain either $40 for renewal of a valid permit, or $50 for a new or expired renewal of a permit. The remaining fee amount will go to the state.

The bill has also stated "if revenues from handgun license fees exceed $1.1 million during a state fiscal year, the excess is appropriated to the state police department for expenses related to the central repository for criminal history date or an electronic log to record the sale of drugs containing ephed-rine or pseudoephedrine."

The sheriff's department issues around 40 handgun licenses a month, while the Greencastle Police Dept. issues around 10 a month. At this time, it is undetermined how the permit changes will affect the number of handgun licenses Greencastle Police and the sheriff's department process in the later months.