How much does a Florida CCW permit cost? Is it $117 as listed in the article? If that's the case, why in the world would folks want to get a permit there instead of here? Why not go to another state that's much cheaper, yet still issues out of state licenses?
There are a few reasons why people get FL permits.
1) they have about the most reciprocity of any permit out there, because they've been doing it longer than anyone else,
2) they are HEAVILY marketed by the press and by CC advocate groups, so everyone knows about them,
3) They are good for 7 years. The fee of $117 seems high, until you pro-rate it out over the life of the permit. At $17/year, and only having to go through the hassle of renewing every 7 years, a lot of people think it's a bargain...
In fairness, I have a NC and 2 non-res permits (UT and PA) but I do not have a FL permit.
I will be turning in my NC permit soon, because I recently changed my residency to Maryland (I have 30 days to turn it in, per NC statute), and I will probably be replacing it with a VA non-res permit. None of my permits do me any good in MD, but having multiple permits is a good idea for me, because I travel a lot in VA and PA anyway...