A gun-rights advocate carries a rifle on his back and a cardboard cutout of a pistol on his waist as a group protests outside the Texas Capitol, in Austin, Texas. Photo: AP

Austin, Texas: Texas politicians have approved carrying handguns openly on the streets of the nation's second most-populous state.

They're now sending the bill to Republican Governor Greg Abbott, who's expected to sign it and reverse a ban dating to the post-Civil War era.

Gun owners would still have to get a licence to carry a handgun in a visible holster.

The state known for its wild west, cowboy history and some the United States' most relaxed gun laws, has allowed concealed handguns for 20 years.

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Concealed handgun licence holders are even allowed to skip the metal detectors at the state Capitol, as state troopers providing security assume they're armed.

But Texas was one of only six states with an outright ban on so-called open carry, and advocates have fought to be allowed to keep their guns in plain sight.

Cast as an important expansion of the second amendment right to bear arms in the US constitution, it became a major issue for the state's strong Republican majority.

Nudged by Mr Abbott's pledge to sign open carry into law, House and Senate Republicans have muscled the bill through the Legislature.

They did so after making concessions to law enforcement groups, who had been upset by an original provision in the bill barring police from questioning people carrying guns if they have no other reason to stop them.

The final bill scrapped that language, meaning police will be able to ask Texans with handguns in plain sight if they have proper licences to be carrying them.

Gun control advocates have argued that open carry is less about personal protection than intimidation.

Gun rights groups have staged several large public rallies in recent years, sometimes at notable historical landmarks such as the Alamo, where members carried rifles in plain sight, which is legal.

Just like the current concealed handgun law, the bill requires anyone wanting to openly carry a handgun to get a licence.

Applicants must be 21, pass a background check and receive classroom and shooting range instruction – although lawmakers have weakened those requirements since 2011.

Texas has about 850,000 concealed handgun licence holders, a number that has increased sharply in recent years.

AP