15-03-2025
DeSantis calls for easing of current Florida gun laws
PALMETTO, Fla. (WFLA) — The Florida legislature is considering several bills that could ease current gun restrictions statewide. During a stop at SeaPort Manatee, the governor discussed his push to loosen current gun laws.
'I would say I'm vindicating people's constitutional 2nd Amendment rights,' DeSantis said.
Florida's famous orange groves may soon disappear
The governor backs House Bill 759 which could lower the age from 21 to 18 to buy a long-gun or rifle. The bill is currently in the committee stage before it reaches the floor.
'You have some 20-year-old marine be out there carrying a firearm in Fallujah, back where I served back in the day, and they come here, and they can't purchase a rifle to go hunting or something like that. It's not something that is consistent with due process,' DeSantis said.
It was a law put in place following the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting in Parkland, before the governor was in office. Republicans just advanced the bill in the house criminal justice subcommittee this week.
Luis Valdes with Gun Owners of America spoke to the committee in favor of them moving the bill forward.
'The parkland situation was an abject failure of government, not gun control. Gun control doesn't solve anything,' Valdes said.
Fiona Shannon with the League of Women Voters opposes the bill.
'Science and common sense tell us the human brain is not fully developed at 18. Young adults are more impulsive, more prone to risky behavior. And in some cases, more susceptible to radicalization,' Shannon said.
Democrats on the committee opposed the bill but it still advanced.
The governor also supports House Bill 31 which could allow open carry.
'If you take your jacket off and put your jacket on and you have a firearm in your holster, somehow you can be prosecuted for that because it's 'open carry' and it doesn't make sense,' DeSantis said.
There have been proposed changes to ease restrictions before. Oftentimes, they have stalled or failed because state senators were not on board.
Republican State Senate President Ben Albritton, who represents a portion of Polk and Hardee counties, has previously opposed an open carry law and is still coming up with a decision on whether to support reducing the age to purchase a long gun.
This is not the first time the governor has publicly advocated for easing restrictions. In 2023, the governor signed a bill into law allowing some Floridians to carry a concealed weapon without a permit.
The governor was in Manatee County on Friday to announce $2 million in state grant funding for SeaPort Manatee. It's to help with paving roads and stormwater projects while the port works to expand.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
