Florida Republican U.S. Reps. Carlos Curbelo and Thomas Rooney joined home-state colleague U.S. Rep. Theodore Deutch (D-FL) in proposing to increase the federal minimum age required for individuals to purchase rifles and shotguns from federally licensed firearms dealers from 18 to 21.
The bipartisan H.R. 5398, introduced on March 22, would amend title 18 of the United States Code to make the federal minimum age increase, according to the congressional record. The federal minimum age limit currently is 21 to buy firearms and 18 to purchase shotguns and rifles. Curbelo’s staff said H.R. 5398 would exempt law enforcement officers, correctional officers and members of the military from the provision and would not ban people under 21 from possessing a firearm.
“This bill is a common-sense proposal that could mitigate some of the violent tragedies being seen in communities like Parkland, without infringing upon the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens,” said Rep. Curbelo, referring to the Feb. 14 mass shooting by a 19-year-old suspect who used a semi-automatic rifle at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., to kill 17 people and injure more than a dozen others.
Rep. Rooney, a former constitutional law professor, noted that the United States federal courts have consistently upheld the constitutionality of age-based restrictions on the commercial sale of firearms to protect public safety. “If you can’t drink a beer until you turn 21, it makes sense that you should have to wait until you’re 21 to buy a gun,” the congressman said.
At the same time, said Rooney, state legislators in Florida, which frequently is thought of as the origin for national gun laws, worked across the aisle to approve comprehensive gun control reforms this year. “It was a group effort, achieved not as Republicans or Democrats, but as Americans ready to make a difference for the future of the state,” Rep. Rooney said. “We need to show we can cut through the partisan divide and do the same in Washington.”
While H.R. 5398 “isn’t perfect and is only one piece of what Congress must consider,” said Rep. Deutch, “it represents one more important bipartisan step toward our ultimate goal of comprehensive gun safety laws.”
Several members of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus served as original cosponsors of H.R. 5398, which has been referred to the U.S. House Judiciary Committee.
Last week the Problem Solvers Caucus also announced its support of a measure introduced by Curbelo and U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) in October 2017 to ban so-called bump stocks, devices that make semi-automatic weapons fire more quickly. The bipartisan bill, H.R. 3999, would prohibit the manufacturing, sale and use of bump stocks and other similar devices, while also strengthening federal sentencing guidelines for violations of the law.
“This common-sense legislation will ban devices that blatantly circumvent already existing law without restricting Second Amendment rights,” Curbelo said. “I’m grateful for the Problem Solvers Caucus’ support and hope that paired with the activism of Americans across the nation we can build enough momentum to stir even more of my colleagues to join us in supporting policies that could mitigate and prevent similar gun violence tragedies in the future.”