Whatever you think about the measure authorizing Missourians to carry concealed handguns, the General Assembly has acted, and the new law soon will take effect. Its proponents assure us that it will make Missouri a safer place, that all applicants will undergo rigorous background checks, and that only law-abiding folks will have the licenses. Let's hope they are right.

George W. Bush, as newly elected governor of Texas, gave similar assurances in 1995 when he signed a bill ending that state's ban on concealed guns. Five years later, alarming facts began to surface about what was happening in the state.

A Los Angeles Times investigation revealed that Texas had handed out concealed-carry licenses to hundreds of people who had been convicted of rape, robbery and other serious crimes. Other applicants breezed through the background checks because they had no criminal records, but Texas officials had failed to conduct investigations sufficient to reveal long histories of abusive behavior, involvement in drug-trafficking gangs and other obvious red flags.

Although advocates of lenient gun licensing have perpetuated a myth that license holders rarely commit crimes, the truth is less comforting.

On average, about 18 licensees have been arrested in Texas every week since the law took effect, including hundreds arrested for offenses involving weapons, violence or drugs.

Despite all this, Bush's policy advisers declared the Texas law to be a “smashing success.” That is the kind of success that Missouri does not need.

Keep in mind that the new law allows concealed handguns to be carried in Missouri by anyone with a permit issued by any state in the country, not just those with Missouri licenses.

The General Assembly is trusting all other states to do a sound job of controlling who receives licenses.

The work of the Missouri legislators who pushed this new law is not finished. They now have an obligation to do more than just sit back and assume that the law will be properly administered and enforced.

They have a responsibility to make certain that it happens. If they do not, they will have a lot of explaining to do every time a tragedy occurs because the wrong person got a license to carry a concealed gun.

Allen Rostron is an associate professor at the School of Law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, and a former staff lawyer for the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence. He lives in Kansas City.