(Updated to add links to votes on Owens and Woodard amendments plus links to amendments proposed by Woodard, Clayton and Ward.)
The Kansas House agreed to lower the age for carrying concealed handguns to 18 years old, replaying an effort that ultimately failed during last year’s legislative session.
The House voted 74-45 on Tuesday to lower the age for carrying a concealed weapon.
The House tacked the amendment on to a bill that would recognize concealed-carry licenses from other states.
The overall bill was approved Wednesday morning 83-41, just one vote short of being able to override any possible veto by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly.
A similar effort was made during last year’s legislative session but later died in a committee.
The amendment for lowering the age for concealed carry was pushed by Republican Rep. Stephen Owens.
“It is not those who can legally obtain a firearm that are trained and receive their concealed-and-carry firearm license who are a problem in this state,” he said.
“It is not high-capacity magazines. It is not all of the other excuses that we like to hear in here,” Owens said. “We’re talking about good people that want the ability to carry firearms.”
He said that anyone under 21 obtaining a concealed-carry license would be required to go through an eight-hour weapons safety and training course.
Democratic state Rep. Jerry Stogsdill said the training requirement was soft for a teen.
He said more rigorous training is required of law enforcement and military officers. Eight hours of training, he said, is hardly enough to ensure a teen will handle a gun safely.
“Eight hours to carry a deadly weapon in this state at 18 years old. Eighteen-year-olds who may not even be out of high school yet,” Stogsdill said. “Can you carry that to prom? I don’t know. Twenty-one is bad enough. But 18? I stand firmly against this.”
In other action, Stogsdill lost an effort to limit handgun magazine capacity to 10 rounds. The amendment was ruled not relevant to the bill.
Democratic state Rep. Barbara Ballard proposed amending the bill to allow state colleges and universities to ban concealed carry on campus. The amendment was voted down 75-43.
Democratic state Rep. Brandon Woodard also tried to amend the bill to require that anyone carrying a gun on campus have a permit to ensure they are sufficiently trained. Woodard’s amendment lost on a 74-47 vote.
Democratic state Rep. Stephanie Clayton proposed expanding background checks for gun buyers at flea markets, on the internet and at gun shows. The amendment was ruled not germane.
Democratic state Rep. Jim Ward also tried to amend the bill by creating a civil action to take a gun away from someone who is emotionally unstable. The amendment was ruled not germane.
