The Florida Legislature passed gun restrictions following the 2018 massacre at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, hoping to curb violence.
But now, lawmakers on Wednesday advanced a bill that would undo one of the major changes they implemented.
Republicans in the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee approved legislation, HB 759, that would allow 18-year-olds to buy long guns, like shotguns and assault rifles.
Nikolas Cruz killed 17 people in Parkland with an AR-15-style rifle. He was 19 years old at the time.
Lawmakers raised the long gun-buying age to 21 years old in response, though those younger can still be gifted such weapons with limitations. The restriction does not apply to law enforcement or correctional officers or active-duty military members.
Federal law largely prevents those below 21 from buying a pistol.
The House bill still has another committee to go through before it goes to the full chamber for a vote.
In past years, the Senate has been a roadblock against a reversal.
There’s legislation in the Senate that would also peel back the long-gun age restriction. But Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, said on Wednesday that he was taking a “very cautious approach” to the bill, not voicing support or disapproval.
He has previously said he’s “working through [the bill] in my mind.”
The legislation “seeks to rectify an inconsistency in our legal framework by ensuring that all adult citizens in Florida are afforded their full Second Amendment rights,” said Republican Rep. Michelle Salzman of Pensacola, the bill sponsor.
She pointed to how 18-year-olds can get married, vote and serve on a jury or in the military.
The restriction was passed under former Gov. Rick Scott. The National Rifle Association challenged the measure, and a federal appeals court decision is pending.
Rep. Robin Bartleman, a Democrat from Weston, spoke about how Parkland shooting survivors and the families of the dead came to the Capitol urging change.
“To go backward is a slap in the face,” Bartleman said, after remarking that the bill had saved lives.
She cited an analysis from the research arm of Everytown for Gun Safety, an anti-gun violence advocacy group. It found 18- to 20-year-olds commit gun homicides at three times the rate of people 21 and older.
All subcommittee Democrats voted against the restriction reversal.
It’s one of multiple gun law changes Gov. Ron DeSantis called for at the beginning of the legislative session.
DeSantis also wants to allow the open carry of firearms and to pull back Florida’s “red flag” law, which was also passed after the Parkland shooting and allows courts to temporarily take away guns from people deemed a threat.
Albritton has already expressed opposition to those measures.
If you have any questions about the legislative session, you can ask the Your Florida team by clicking here.
This story was produced by WUSF as part of a statewide journalism initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
