Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy made a drastic announcement: in order to make up for the state’s budget deficit, the state is drastically increasing the price of concealed carry applications to generate revenue. To address Connecticut’s $3.6 billion shortfall, Malloy has suggested increasing permits from $70 to $300, a more than 420 percent increase. He also suggested raising the initial 5-year pistol permit fee from $140 to $370, a more than 250 percent increase. In addition, Malloy wants to increase the background fee from $50 to $75.

Based on Gov. Malloy’s estimates, upping the price of permits would generate $9 million in new revenue and increasing the background check fee would bring in an additional $2.6 million.

“When you consider just six years ago a five-year renewal was only $35, in six years we’ve seen a near tenfold increase,” Scott Wilson, Connecticut Citizens Defense League (CCDL) president told the Hartford Courant.

Wilson explained gun owners’ feeling about the proposal to the New Haven Register:

We feel that the increase of Pistol Permit fees 400 percent is astronomical. This will have a deep impact on those who only wish to protect their own lives, and the lives of their families. Many Connecticut gun owners are struggling with the current economic conditions in our state. If a cost increase of this measure goes through in the governor’s budget, we will consider this an infringement on the 2nd Amendment. If Connecticut residents are forced to pay exorbitant fees in order to purchase and/or carry a firearm for protection, it legitimately ceases to be a right anymore.

According to Wilson, Gov. Malloy is someone who clearly doesn’t care about Second Amendment rights. Now the question becomes, how will this impact the constitutional rights of Connecticut’s citizens who may be strapped for cash?