TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) – A Florida House panel passed a bill Tuesday morning that would lower the minimum age to purchase long guns like rifles and shotguns from 21 to 18, despite overwhelming public comments opposing the measure.
The current age restriction was implemented after the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in 2018. Gun advocates argue that age-based restrictions on gun ownership are inconsistent with other Florida laws.
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“Here in Florida, 18 to 20-year-olds can legally carry a firearm. They can even open carry a firearm. But they cannot legally purchase one,” said Jack Carrol of Gun Owners of Florida. “That means their right to self-defense exists only if someone else buys the firearm for them.”
Opponents of the bill questioned the maturity of young adults in that age range.
“You don’t trust kids between 18 and 20 to use medical marijuana, to drink, really to make any adult decisions,” said Ashe Bradley, who opposes lowering the gun buying age. “If any of you up on the panel have adult children, you know as a parent between 18 and 20, these are children.”
The House has passed similar legislation for the past three years, but the bills have not advanced through the Senate.
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