This has been a long time coming. The new measure isn’t perfect but it’s a step in the right direction.

The Dallas Morning News reported.

Texas Senate approves campus carry, but with some flexibility for colleges

Campus carry cleared one of its final hurdles Saturday as Senate Republicans voted to let licensed Texans carry concealed handguns in most state university buildings.

The proposal still needs House approval Sunday before it can be sent to Gov. Greg Abbott, who would be likely to sign it.

But by moving quickly in the Senate — where it passed on a 20-11 party-line vote — supporters avoided perhaps their biggest threat: a filibuster by Senate Democrats.

The bill, which would go into effect for four-year universities in fall 2016, moved forward only after House and Senate negotiators worked out a deal late Friday to ease the mandates on both public and private universities.

At the House’s urging, the measure would give public university presidents increased flexibility to establish some gun-free zones on campus. And at the Senate’s request, it would allow private schools to totally opt out of the bill’s provisions.