TALLAHASSEE — Florida House Republicans on Wednesday backed a proposal that would repeal part of a law passed after the 2018 mass shooting at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and allow people under age 21 to buy rifles and shotguns.

The GOP-controlled House Criminal Justice Subcommittee voted 13-5 along straight party lines to approve the proposal (HB 759). The House passed such bills in 2023 and 2024, but the Senate did not go along.

Rep. Michelle Salzman, a Pensacola Republican who is a sponsor of this year’s bill, said it seeks “to rectify an inconsistency in our legal framework by ensuring that all adult citizens in Florida are afforded their full 2nd Amendment rights.”

“Concerns about the maturity of 18- to 20-year-olds have been raised,” Salzman said. “But this group is already entrusted with significant responsibilities, such as voting, serving on juries and enlisting in the armed forces.”

But opponents of the bill pointed to the Parkland massacre, when 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz used a semi-automatic rifle to kill 17 students and faculty members. Rep. Robin Bartleman, D-Weston, said survivors and family members came to Tallahassee after the shooting and “asked us to change our laws to keep them safe.”

“We owe it to these families not to go backwards,” she said.

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While the law prevents people under age 21 from buying rifles and other long guns, they can receive such guns, for example, as gifts. Federal law has long prevented people under 21 from buying handguns from licensed dealers. The House bill would allow people under 21 to buy handguns from “private” sellers, who are not licensed dealers, according to a staff analysis.

The Republican-controlled Legislature and then-Gov. Rick Scott included the restriction on sales of rifles and long guns in a broad school-safety law after the Parkland shooting. The National Rifle Association quickly filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the gun-sale part of the law.

Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker and a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the age restriction. But the full Atlanta-based appeals court decided to take up the issue and held a hearing in October. It has not issued a ruling.

Gov. Ron DeSantis this month signaled that he would support revising state gun laws, including the gun-sale restriction. Senate bills have been filed about the issue, though they have not been heard in committees. The House bill needs to clear the Judiciary Committee before it could go to the full House.

Wednesday’s meeting drew groups on both sides of gun issues. Groups such as the NRA, Gun Owners of America and Florida Carry supported the bill, while groups such as the League of Woman Voters and Moms Demand Action opposed it.

“As a father, I want my daughter to be armed when she is under the age of 21 and she is living outside my house, so she is able to protect herself,” Luis Valdes of Gun Owners of America told the House panel. “Right now, the law disarms women. It disarms our college students.”

But opponents said scientific research shows that young adults’ brains aren’t fully developed and that they are more prone to such things as risky behavior.

“We must think harder and longer,” Rep. Dianne Hart, D-Tampa. “Eighteen-year-olds don’t need guns. We don’t let them drink alcohol for a reason. They are not ready yet.”

Originally Published: March 12, 2025 at 5:52 PM EDT