Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN Legal & Legislation

Texas House Committee Advances Gun Control Bill

Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Texas House Committee Advances Gun Control Bill

Call and Email Your State Representatives & Urge Them To OPPOSE HB 2744

Yesterday, the House Committee on Community Safety reported out House Bill 2744legislation which restricts the Second Amendment rights of young adults aged 18-20 by prohibiting them from purchasing most semi-automatic rifles. At age 18, citizens are eligible to vote, be drafted, serve in the military, serve on a jury, enter into contracts, sue and be sued, get married, and own property. Restricting their right to purchase and own firearms is unconstitutional and will not reduce crime. It is critical that you call and email your State Representatives TODAY and urge them to OPPOSE HB 2744! Click here to find your Representative.

NRA Opposes HB 2744

  • The firearms banned for sale by the bill track the definition of “assault weapon” used by Biden’s appointee to ATF: “a semi-automatic rifle that is capable of accepting a detachable magazine and that has a caliber greater than .22.” This includes nearly EVERY modern sporting rifle.
  • The bill makes it a FELONY to sell, rent, lease, loan, or give a person who is under 21 years of age any semi-automatic rifle described in the bill. HB 2744 includes not just a ban on the commercial sales of any of these rifles to 18-20 year olds, but also the temporary loan, the temporary transfer of possession, and the gifting of these firearms to them, with limited exceptions. There is no express exemption for a temporary loan or transfer for self-defense or defense of property in cases where the transferor is not present or while on property that is not owned or leased by the transferor. There is no exception for an 18-20 year old traveling alone with described rifles to or from one of the permissible activities exempted in the bill.
  • The federal government has already instituted a 3-10-day federal waiting period for 18-to-20-year-olds purchasing firearms. During this period, the FBI is tasked with conducting a so-called “enhanced” background check on the prospective purchaser. This includes an examination of state juvenile records and contacting local law enforcement in the jurisdiction in which the purchaser resides.
  • In NYSRPA v. Bruen (2022), the U.S. Supreme Court prescribed a discrete test under which restrictions on the individual right to keep and bear arms are to be measured. In order for a firearm regulation to pass muster under the Second Amendment, the government must “identify a well-established and representative historical analogue.” Regarding prohibitions on young adults purchasing firearms, this cannot be done. There were no laws that restricted 18-to-20-year-olds from purchasing firearms at the time of the American founding.
  • It is clear from the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) that 18-to-20-year-olds are part of “the people” referenced in the text of the Second Amendment. As the amendment protects “the right of the people to keep and bear Arms,” the rights of 18-to-20-year-olds fall under this protection.
  • Following the Bruen decision, a federal court in Texas struck down the state’s prohibition on 18-20-year-olds carrying a handgun outside the home for self-defense, citing both Heller and Bruen. These rulings are consistent with the American understanding of the age of majority and who constitutes the political community.
  • In 2019, Florida State University Professor of Criminology Gary Kleck published the research paper entitled “Regulating Guns Among Young Adults” in the American Journal of Criminal Justice. This study assessed the impact of state bans on gun carrying among persons ages 18-to-20-years-old on rates of murder, robbery, and aggravated assault. The results indicated no significant effect of these bans on any of the three violent crime rates. A second study assessed the impact of the federal ban on the purchase of handguns by persons ages 18-to-20. Results indicated there was no impact on the 18 to 20-year-old share of arrests for homicide, robbery, or aggravated assault.


TRENDING NOW
Congress Passes the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” Now Headed to President Trump

News  

Thursday, July 3, 2025

Congress Passes the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” Now Headed to President Trump

Earlier today the U.S. House of Representatives passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” This bill contained a provision that would, among other things, eliminate the burdensome $200 excise tax imposed by federal law on suppressors, short-barreled firearms, ...

One Big Beautiful Bill Clears Senate, and Heads Back to House

News  

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

One Big Beautiful Bill Clears Senate, and Heads Back to House

Earlier today the U.S. Senate passed the “One Big Beautiful Bill.” This bill contained a provision that would, among other things, eliminate the burdensome $200 excise tax imposed by federal law on suppressors, short-barreled firearms, and “any ...

U.S. House Sends Reconciliation Bill to President Trump

News  

Second Amendment  

Thursday, July 3, 2025

U.S. House Sends Reconciliation Bill to President Trump

NFA Tax on Suppressors, Short-Barreled Firearms, and Other Arms Reduced to $0

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

News  

Second Amendment  

Thursday, May 22, 2025

U.S. House Passes Reconciliation Bill, Removing Suppressors from the National Firearms Act

Earlier today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R.1 the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which included Section 2 of the Hearing Protection Act, completely removing suppressors from the National Firearms Act (NFA).

U.S. Senate Adds Pro-Gun Tax Relief Language Back into Reconciliation Bill

News  

Saturday, June 28, 2025

U.S. Senate Adds Pro-Gun Tax Relief Language Back into Reconciliation Bill

Overnight, the U.S. Senate added pro-gun tax relief language back into the Reconciliation bill after the Senate Parliamentarian struck out an earlier provision.  While this new provision is not as expansive as the language we advocated for which ...

President Trump Signs the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” into Law

News  

Friday, July 4, 2025

President Trump Signs the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” into Law

Earlier today, on the 4th of July, a day on which our Founding Fathers declared their intent for a free nation, the President of the United State of America, Donald Trump, signed the “One Big ...

Armed Churchgoers Prevent Mass Attack as State Lawmakers Plot More Gun Control

News  

Monday, June 30, 2025

Armed Churchgoers Prevent Mass Attack as State Lawmakers Plot More Gun Control

Just over an hour away from the state capitol in Lansing, Michigan – even as lawmakers worked feverishly to pass various gun control measures, including expansion of “gun free” zones – a chilling reminder unfolded of the ...

North Carolina: Update on Gun Bills Moving through the General Assembly

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

North Carolina: Update on Gun Bills Moving through the General Assembly

Recently, House Bill 193 (H193) was reported favorably out of both the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Rules Committee, with amendments.

Canada’s Big Ugly Gun Grab: An Update

News  

Monday, June 30, 2025

Canada’s Big Ugly Gun Grab: An Update

Canada’s Liberal government is pressing on with its harebrained gun ban and confiscation program for “assault style weapons,” but, true to form and precedents, it has been far from smooth sailing.

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

News  

Monday, March 17, 2025

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

In a turnabout worthy of Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Washington Post (WAPO) published an editorial last Tuesday criticizing the gun control movement for ignoring the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) and pursuing its agenda in ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.