Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY) has introduced a bill to lower the age to buy a handgun from a federal firearms licensee (FFL) from 21 to 18.
Current regulation makes it impossible for anyone under 21 to get a handgun from a gun shop because the FBI will not process anyone under 21 buying a handgun through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). The 1968 Gun Control Act expressly prohibits an 18 to 20-year-old from buying a handgun from a retail location. However, it is not against federal law preventing a non-prohibited person between 18 and 20 from acquiring a handgun from private parties. The problem is that all transfers through an FFL must go through NICS.
Many states have laws requiring all firearm transfers to be done through an FFL, meaning that even if those states allow 18-year-old citizens to buy handguns from private sellers, they cannot take possession of the firearm. Some states with universal background checks have made exceptions to their rules, exempting state residents between 18 and 20 from mandatory background checks for handguns. Virginia is one state with this court order exemption after the state was sued by the Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) and Gun Owners of America (GOA).
The bill (H.R. 6782) is called the Second Amendment for Every Registrable (SAFER) Voter Act. In addition to Thomas Massie, other Republicans are co-sponsoring the bill including Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL), Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA), Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN), Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Rep. Harriet Hageman (R-WY), Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA), Rep. Alex Mooney (R-WV), Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC), and Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA).
Rep. Massie is the Co-Chairman of the Second Amendment Caucus and has been a staunch supporter of gun rights in Congress. He compares the right to buy a handgun to the right to vote. He points out that 18-year-olds are considered adults and should have the rights of any other adults.
“Why should a 20-year-old single mom be denied the right to defend herself and her children?” asks Representative Massie. “18, 19, and 20-year-olds are considered adults and can vote on important public policy issues. They can also form business contracts, get married, and serve in the military. As adults, these Americans should not be deprived of basic constitutional rights.”
Gun Owners of America (GOA), the National Shooting Sports Federation (NSSF), and many other gun rights groups have backed the proposal. They believe that the United States Constitution sets age limits on things like the age to be president, but the founders chose not to put an age limit on the right to bear arms.
Gun rights groups believe that it was a conscious choice not to limit the Second Amendment by age. Aidan Johnston, Director of Federal Affairs for GOA, celebrated the bill.
“The current 18 to 20-year-old handgun ban says that the Second Amendment is a second-class right, relegated to the backwaters of the Constitution,” Johnston said. “Gun-grabbers believe that if they can disarm young people in the years prior to turning 21, they can discourage and depress gun ownership for a new generation of Americans. That’s why Rep. Thomas Massie’s SAFER Voter Act is so important because it restores the right of young adults to purchase handguns for self-defense.”
The bill faces an uphill battle. It is currently in the House Judiciary. Even if it passes the House of Representatives, the bill will have a hard time passing the Senate, and President Joe Biden will veto the bill if it makes it to his desk.
About John Crump
John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.
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