Florida lawmakers work to pass bill to restrict gun sales

Following the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fl. last month, survivors of the massacre assembled together to demand change. The students gathered at the state capitol to protest and ensure that their voices were heard, but the Florida state legislature still rejected the bill to ban many semi-automatic guns.

Florida’s Senate passed a bill that could create new restrictions on rifle sales and allow some teachers to carry guns in schools.

“I’m glad to see that the Senate agreed to compromise on this bill,” junior early education major Caitlyn Hill said. “With both parties having such conflicting views, not much gets accomplished, but this is a good start to dealing with the major problem the United States is having with gun violence.”

Many people wish the restricted sales on guns would continue to go further. They hope, along with the students of Stoneman Douglas, for a ban on assault-style rifles.

In an interview with ABC News, Democratic Sen. Lauren Book said, “My community was rocked. My school children were murdered in their classrooms. I cannot live with a choice to put party politics above an opportunity to get something done that inches us closer to the place I believe we should be as a state. This is the first step in saying never again.”

The restrictions on rifle sales include raising the minimum age to buy guns in stores and magazines from 18 to 21 as well as enforcing longer waiting periods on the sales of the weapons. The bill also allows teachers to volunteer to carry a gun in case of an emergency.

There is a limit on which teachers can volunteer to carry guns during school hours. They must go through law enforcement training and be participating in other extracurricular duties aside from teaching, such as coaching. Former or current law enforcement officers or members of the military will be more likely encouraged to volunteer as well.

Democrats did not like the idea of letting teachers carry guns, while the Republicans did not agree with the restrictions for purchasing guns.

The hope for the bill is to make schools a safer place. Along with the restrictions and armed school personnel, the bill also proposes new and improved mental health programs for students. Schools would also be encouraged to establish an anonymous tip line where students and others can report threats to authorities.

The bill now goes to the House to be considered by the full chamber before becoming law.

“I definitely do not think that teachers should be carrying guns,” Sarah Ash, a senior exercise science and health promotion major, said. “That could only add to the problem and in no way help solve it.”