Updated at 6:25 p.m.
The Vermont Senate is expected to consider legislation Friday that would raise the legal age to purchase firearms from 16 to 21, except for members of the military and law enforcement officials.
Senate President Pro Tempore Tim Ashe (D/P-Chittenden) plans to introduce the proposal Thursday afternoon as an amendment to unrelated gun-regulation legislation. It would be considered Friday morning by the Senate Judiciary Committee and reach the Senate floor for debate and a vote later that day.
Fifteen other senators signed on as cosponsors of the amendment Thursday, suggesting that it has the votes to pass the 30-member chamber.
The proposal resembles one offered up last week by Republican Gov. Phil Scott as part of a slate of gun-control and school-safety measures. It differs from the governor’s proposal in one key respect: Scott’s would allow those under 21 who take a gun safety course to buy firearms, while Ashe’s would not.
At a press conference Thursday afternoon, Scott said he would prefer his version of the age restriction, but if one resembling Ashe’s reached his desk, “I could find a way to support that.”
Vermont law currently prohibits the sale of guns to those under age 16. Federal law prohibits the sale of handguns to those under 18 but sets no age restriction on the sale of rifles or shotguns by those who are not licensed firearms dealers.
Ashe hopes to attach his amendment to S.55, a gun-storage bill that has become a vehicle for several unrelated gun-control initiatives. The Senate attached another amendment to that legislation Thursday afternoon, mandating criminal background checks for all gun sales.
Senate Judiciary Committee chair Dick Sears (D-Bennington), who has been cool to some gun-control proposals and who opposes universal background checks, said Thursday he would be “fine” with raising the legal age to buy firearms but would “need some assurances” that the legislation wouldn’t prevent young people from hunting.
John Walters contributed reporting.
Disclosure: Tim Ashe is the domestic partner of Seven Days publisher and coeditor Paula Routly. Find our conflict-of-interest policy here: sevendaysvt.com/disclosure.
Related Stories
Got something to say?
Send a letter to the editor and we'll publish your feedback in print!
I have to laugh at all of the posters who think that Phil Scott will be a one term governor because of his change in stance on gun control legislation. You all need to realize that the Vermont majority favors this legislation and in all likelihood, Scott will get more votes this go around. If you think otherwise, you are not really aware of the political climate in this state.
It is a serious mistake to further disadvantage young people by restricting gun ownership to military or 21 y.o…
Already weak and unfit for much physical activity, who is to defend the US population from a simple incursion into the USA? If other nations have children well trained in shooting, what chance do our kids have? We should provide courses and certification for anyone to be able to own a gun. We should be working hard to make Vermont strong again, not finish us off with complete incompetency which is what the far left want to do to us. All the false flags using guns have been orchestrated by the corrupt FBI and are designed to take away guns. The Parkland shooting is another great example as more details are coming out about the most corrupted Broward County and their sheriff Israel. Do fall for the hysteria; teach gun safety in schools, arm willing staff and teachers who are certified. Make target shooting a team sport. Make Vermont strong again.
Issue a learner’s permit to teens interested in guns. They must undergo training on proper use by experts and cannot be tormented by any emotional or psychological complexes that render them unstable to qualify. When they are 21 they get full access to any legal weapon.
Simply upping the age for possession to 21 is useless on it’s own.
Gun control can never and never will work. The gun didn’t pull the trigger. Sick humans are the problem.
The right of the people to have and bear arms can never be abridged!!!!!! Accept it people as it is to protect us from tyrants who crave to deal with us disarmed. Study some history with eyes open for a change and actually comprehend something about the evil existing in the human hearts of people who lust for power.
Our Founding Fathers were geniuses compared to modern day leaders in this country.