Texas law allows employees to keep guns in cars at work

Austin, TX – Workers in Texas may bring firearms to work as long as the guns remain stored in employees' locked motor vehicles under a new state law that went into effect Sept. 1.

Although Texas law allows people to carry concealed handguns in their cars, many employers have policies banning firearms in their parking lots.

S.B. 321 overrides such rules. However, employers can ban employees from bringing guns into the office or company-owned vehicles. The law also protects employers from lawsuits related to the use of a firearm stored on their property.

An exception is made for certain chemical facilities, which may limit firearm storage in parking lots to employees with a concealed handgun license. Also exempt are elementary, middle and high schools, as well as private landowners leasing oil, gas or mineral rights on their property.