TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A bill filed at the state capitol aims to lower the minimum age to purchase rifles and other long guns from 21 to 18 in Florida. If passed, the legislation would reverse part of the law passed after the Parkland Shooting.
In February 2018, Nikolas Cruz, then 19, killed 17 students and faculty members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas. The next month, the Legislature and then-Gov. Rick Scott passed the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Act, which raised the minimum age to buy a gun to 21 years old.
A similar bill was filed last year and failed. At the time, Rep. Bobby Payne, who sponsored the new version, said it “corrects the wrong we did in 2018.”
Payne argues HB 1223 will restore rights back to law-abiding citizens.
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“If you can vote, you can serve in the military, and you can do other things with regard to Constitutional rights. This is an inalienable right that people should be able to protect themselves and have a gun,” Payne said.
Rep. Christine Hunschofsky, who opposed the bill in 2023, said she will continue to be outspoken against this year’s version. She was the mayor of Parkland during the shooting.
“I think that what the Legislature did at the time, we viewed it as political courage because they did things that a lot of people at the time said, ‘We don’t think this is a good idea.’ They did it anyway because they knew it was the right thing to do,” Hunschofsky said. “To take the time now to roll back some of those provisions is incredibly concerning.”
Hunschofsky calls the legislation passed in 2018 as the “gold standard.”
“It enacted risk protection orders. Florida is one of the first states to enact those, and those have been used over 9,000 times in the state and thank goodness we have not experienced another school shooting in the state of Florida since,” she said.
News 6 spoke to political expert and professor Jim Clark. He said it is unlikely a bill that would lower the age to buy a rifle or long gun will pass.
“I think the legislature wants to stay away from this. It’s an election year. It’s a hot-button issue,” said Clark. “I think most legislators feel they did something correct and don’t want to go back and look at this again and stir up the Parkland controversy all over again.”
HB1223 states in part, “A person younger than 18 years of age may not purchase a firearm. The sale or transfer of a firearm to a person younger than 18 years of age may not be made or facilitated by a licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, or licensed dealer.”
Any person who violates the act could be charged with a third-degree felony.
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