Law raising age to 21 for shotgun, rifle sales passes state Senate

Nikolas Samuels/The Signal
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A California law raising the age to buy a shotgun or rifle from age 18 to 21 passed the Senate on May 29. Now it heads to the Assembly for consideration.

Senate Bill 1100, authored by state Sen. Anthony Portantino, D-La CaƱada Flintridge, would raise the current age and prevent people from exceeding more than one long gun purchase per month.

Current legislation only prohibits handguns for purchasers under age 21. The proposed legislation would prohibit all types of guns for such purchasers.

State Sen. Scott Wilk, R-Antelope Valley, voted against the bill. State Sen. Henry Stern, D-Canoga Park, voted in favor of the bill.

Assemblymen Dante Acosta, R-Santa Clarita, and Tom Lackey, R-Palmdale, have not taken formal positions on the record on how they would vote on the bill, according to their offices.

In response, Congressman Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, introduced legislation to bolster school security.

ā€œItā€™s the prerogative of the California Legislature to pass and enact laws that they best see fit,ā€ his office said in a statement. ā€œAt the federal level, Congressman Knight remains a steadfast supporter of the Second Amendment while also recognizing that there are measures that can be taken to improve public safety and keep dangerous weapons out of the hands of criminals.ā€

Provisions from bills co-sponsored by Knight for surveillance programs, barricade technology and other school security measures were signed into law with Congressā€™ Omnibus Appropriations Bill in March.

The Omnibus bill also included provisions from the Fix NICS Act, which concerns accountability for reporting to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), the system for purchase of firearms from federally licensed sellers.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League did not have a formal position on the matter, said spokesman Dustin DeRollo.

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