Florida bill would lower minimum age for buying long guns, rifles

A bill headed to the floor of the Florida House would lower the minimum age required for long gun and rifle purchases from 21 to 18.

“We talk a heck of a lot in this building, and in this state, about freedom,” said Democratic Rep. Dan Daley of Coral Springs. “What about the freedom to not be shot? What about the freedom to go to school without the fear of being shot? What about the freedom to come home to your parents at the end of the day?”

The age to buy a rifle or long gun in Florida was raised five years ago in the wake of the Parkland massacre. House Bill 1543 would reset that law.

While the memory of 17 lives snatched away on Valentine’s Day in 2018 got state lawmakers to raise the minimum age for buying rifles and long guns, some now say the prohibition violates people’s constitutional rights.

“Restore the rights of our law-abiding citizens here in our state because it is the right thing to do,” said Republican Rep. Berny Jacques of Seminole. “It’s consistent with our constitution, and it is what will help enhance public safety here in the free state of Florida.”

Daley, who graduated from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, wants the current law to stand.

“My fear is that if we pass this bill, you are going to see more Parklands,” Daley said. “You are going to see more school shootings, and you are going to see that more people will die.”

While some legislators say reversing the law put into place after the Parkland massacre is a step backward that will result in more bloodshed and lost lives, others say it will enable wider self-protection.

“It’s always the wrong answer to punish the innocent,” said Republican Rep. Tommy Gregory of Lakewood Ranch. “Raising the age from 18 to 21, I think, in retrospect, was the wrong answer because we are catching innocent Americans whose rights should be protected.”

“It’s just really, really disappointing and heartbreaking that we are, I feel, moving in the wrong direction with this legislation and the other gun legislation we are looking at this year,” said Democratic Rep. Kristen Arrington of Kissimmee.

Florida House Speaker Paul Renner supports lowering the age to buy a rifle or long gun, while Senate President Kathleen Passidomo opposes the bill.

No Senate version of the bill has been filed.