TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Should people as young as 18 years old in Florida be legally allowed to own or purchase firearms?
Lawmakers in the Florida House seem to think so.
For three years in a row, the House has passed legislation that would lower Florida’s gun ownership age from 21 to 18, but those proposals have made no headway in the Senate, leaving the law as it is.
Rep. Tyler I. Sirois, a Merritt Island Republican who represents part of Brevard County, is trying again. He filed HB 133 for consideration in the 2026 legislative session.
The bill, again, proposes lowering the minimum age to purchase or own a firearm in Florida from 21 to 18.
The 21-year-old age restriction was initially implemented in 2018, following the Parkland school massacre.
The NRA has sued Florida, so far unsuccessfully, over the law that raised the gun-buying age, arguing that the restriction infringes on the Second Amendment rights of “law-abiding, responsible young adults.”
A U.S. appeals court upheld the law in March 2023, and the NRA has since petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case, which is currently pending. The high court is expected to decide this fall whether to hear the case.
Current Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has asked the Supreme Court to strike down the age restriction law.
And the Florida Senate’s appetite for tackling the issue might shift in the next session, after a state appeals court recently struck down Florida’s ban on the open carrying of firearms.
If the gun age bill were to succeed in both the House and Senate and get the governor’s signature, the changes would take effect on July 1, 2026.
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