So using another member's letter on here as a base to modify for my own I wrote the following to my state reps. House and Senate.
Dear Representative Kolkhurst and Senator Ogden:
I am writing to you to express my concern over the time that it is taking the Department of Public Safety to process CHL applications, particularly for residents in and around Harris County.
I completed my CHL training course on August 30th and sent my completed application to Austin on September 2nd. On September 15th I received a letter requesting a better copy of my DD-214 that showed my honorable discharge status from the USAF. On October 1st the status of my application changed online to "Processing Application" and has remained so to this day. Using the October 1st date as reference it has been more than 90 days since my application started processing and if you use the September 4th date I was given over the phone on December 30th as the receipt date then it has been even longer, including a delay of providing a new copy of my DD-214. The DPS representative I spoke with was very polite and was only able to tell me that they were still waiting on background checks and would not divulge which counties were suspect as they were no longer allowed to.
Based on information from others with similar experiences on a forum for Texas CHL holders (TexasCHLforum.com). I can deduce that the main problem is with Harris and/or Montgomery Counties. Harris County applicants are notorious for having to wait more than 120+ days while Tarrant and other counties surrounding DFW have their plastic “in hand” in less than 40 days.
As I am sure that you already know, GC §411.177(b) states, "The department shall, not later than the 60th day after the date of the receipt by the director's designee of the completed application materials:"
(1) issue the license;
(2) notify the applicant in writing that the application was denied;
(3) notify the applicant in writing that the department is unable to make a determination regarding the issuance or denial of a license to the applicant within the 60-day period prescribed by this subsection and include in that notification an explanation of the reason for the inability and an estimation of the amount of time the department will need to make the determination.
I have never received any notification, other than when I called and spoke with someone, that there would be a delay, not even the distributed “Ike letter” that was sent to many Harris and Brazoria county applicants. As a matter of fact the DPS representative on the phone also could not inform me as to an estimate of the time frame it will take to complete the application either. As a conservative, law-abiding citizen, and an honorably discharged veteran residing in House District 13 and Senate District 5, I am asking you, as my state representatives, to use your particular influence to ensure that my application is processed to completion and CHL issued in the most expeditious manner possible.
I would further urge you to use your best efforts and influence to identify and remove whatever inefficiencies exist in CHL applications processing in Harris and its surrounding counties, such that all law-abiding and eligible applicants receive their CHLs in a timely manner.
I thank you in advance for your attention to this matter and would appreciate your response to this communication.
Kind Regards,
We shall see what happens. I thought it was important to continue to express it is a greater problem with the gulf coast counties and that we want it resolved to everyone's benefit, not just ours as an individual. The more law-abiding citizens that have their CHLs the better for everyone's protection.