Inexpensive UT/FL CCW training - Thoughts & anybody wants to join this week?

[mikka1 2]

After some time spent figuring out what CCW permit would be better for me - Utah or Florida one - I finally decided to get both, LOL (or at least start with Utah to get PA/DE asap and then add FL permit later on).

 

I looked through some of the websites offering training for those and essentially I was looking for the best price (of course considering travel time as well - no reason to fly to Utah even if it'd be free of charge there). Don't get me wrong here, I'm not trying to save pennies on _training_ - it's a different story and I'm actively looking for some serious instruction to get maybe this spring, but rather on _getting a compliant certificate to have a CCW permit as inexpensive as possible_.

 

I essentially found two possible options:

 

1) Legal Heat - http://www.mylegalheat.com/classes/c/

They often have UT CCW classes in PA, sometimes pretty close to PA/NJ border (e.g. today they have a class in Hamburg and this Friday they go to Harrisburg, both not that far from NJ). They charge $75 for the class itself + $10-20 for fingerprinting + a fee if paid with a CC.

On a bad side: they advertise their course to be sufficient to get UT, PA and AZ permits, but NOT FL

 

2) Damon Finch - http://www.damonfinch.com/id77.html

They offer combined NYS/UT/FL class and charge $100 for it inclusive of fingerprinting for UT, notary and photos. This Thursday they have an evening class in Newburgh, NY which is ~60 miles from Newark.

 

***

 

So far I am inclined to choose #2 and go there this Thursday while I still have some time and not much of a workload after Christmas. 

I had some concerns around the validity of this course for FL CCW permit without a live fire portion, so I gave them a call and explicitly asked if this one was valid for FL or not and their answer was "Yes, it is valid". Given that they've been offering this training for quite some time, they would've probably been caught if it had been otherwise.

 

Any thoughts? Anyone heard of these Damon Finch and Legal Heat classes?

 

They have some spots for Thursday, so if anyone wants to join me and go to Newburgh together, I'd be happy to.

 

Thanks

[djg0770 481]

Florida REQUIRES a live fire portion.  You can use a hunting license, many NRA courses, or a DD-214 (if you were in the military) as sufficient proof of live fire training.

[AverageJoe 95]

Also remember when looking at class prices, there is a $51 charge that goes to Utah...some classes that seem more expensive include this fee. Your "cheaper" classes will most likely not include this...inquire within.

[mikka1 2]

Florida REQUIRES a live fire portion.  You can use a hunting license, many NRA courses, or a DD-214 (if you were in the military) as sufficient proof of live fire training.

 

Well, apparently this has been a subject of a VERY heated debate on some of NY online forums. I am personally on your side here, but the wording of FL statutes essentially puts it on the shoulders of your instructor. As far as this company publicly advertises this AS "sufficient for FL CCW", I am fine. If I get a reply from FL stating that my training was not acceptable, I'll make this company quite unhappy :-) (still hopefully having at least my UT CCW in hands).

 

Also remember when looking at class prices, there is a $51 charge that goes to Utah...some classes that seem more expensive include this fee. Your "cheaper" classes will most likely not include this...inquire within.

 

RTSP charges the same $200 and afaik it does not include Utah fee. I only know GFH offering UT courses for $200 with UT fee included. It's my second option actually as overall it's not that bad.  If only it was UT/FL combined, I'd probably jump on it right away, as GFH is literally 10 miles from me.

Maybe it might be a good idea for Anthony to include a live fire portion and/or whatever required for FL and design such a combined class...

[Mr.Stu 1,922]

Heritage Guild does a Utah course for around $130 and you have to pay the $51 fee to Utah yourself. I did it last month and I'm waiting for the permit t arrive.

 

http://register.asapconnected.com/CourseDetail.aspx?CourseID=23392

[CageFighter 236]

cheaper doesn't always mean better! 

...becoming part of the GFH family has its priviledges!   I took their class on the 12th & Charlie was great! 

it included classroom, prints & direct payment to UT...all I needed to do was show up!

[mikka1 2]

Just to update on the timing - yesterday (02/19) status tracking on FL licensing website changed to "Your license was issued. Please allow 2-4 weeks for printing and mailing". I sent documents in to Florida on 01/10, based on USPS tracking they received them on 01/13, so it took them only a little bit more than a month to approve my CCW license despite my status (Green Card holder, not a citizen), huge backlog (as they state on their website), paper-based fingerprints and literally the whole country applying for their CCW license.

 

Seem to be great job by Florida officials so far! Let's see how quickly it arrives... (...sadly looking at my P2P app already being processed for 3+ months already... )

[JTS1469 0]

Does anyone have info. On the NYS ccw? I have Utah and Fla. and didn't realize that NYS might be available. I work in Westchester every day and think that the classes that I've taken already for ccw might meet the criteria and make getting the next one easier.

[DSD1026 48]

i do not believe you can get a NY CCW unless you are a NY resident. 

[magnawing 5]

From USACarry.com regarding NY State CC permits:

 

Concealed Permit:
May Issue to Residents and Non-Residents

The determination whether to grant the license is completely within the discretion of the licensing officer. However, the licensing officer must state specifically and concisely in writing the reasons for a denial. A denial can only be overturned in court if the denial is shown to be arbitrary and capricious.

 

And this is about the lowest I've seen except where no permit is required:

 

Cost: A license fee is fixed by the board of supervisors in each county, with a $10.00 limit prescribed by state law. The Division of Criminal Justice Services sets the fingerprinting fee.

 

 

There's also this:

 

An applicant for a license to carry outside the home must be required to show, in addition to the requirement for possession, that proper cause exists for the issuance of a carry license, including, for example, target shooting, hunting, or self-defense.

[DSD1026 48]

i just read the NY law..  says nothing about may issue to non-residents.  says you cannot carry unless you have a NY license..  and it doesnt say anything in the carry section about granting to non-residents..

 

that is from the NRA site and NYfirearms.com (and just about every other site I looked at)

 

I am pretty certain that NY has never issued a CCW permit to a non-resident.