AHouse committee in Texas advanced a measure Monday that would raise the minimum age to buy semi-automatic rifles, in an unexpected shift following a shooting at a Dallas-area outlet mall over the weekend that left nine people dead.
The legislation was approved by the Select Committee on Community Safety in an 8-5 vote, with two Republicans backing the Democratic bill. The measure is sponsored by Rep. Tracy King, who represents Uvalde, where an 18-year-old gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school last May.
Under the bill’s provisions, the minimum age required to purchase a semi-automatic rifle with a detachable magazine and with a caliber greater than .22 would be raised from 18 to 21. King and Reps. Sam Harless and Justin Holland, the two Republicans who backed the legislation, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday night.
Several states, mostly Democratic-led, have enacted laws raising the minimum purchasing age for semi-automatic rifles in recent years. Monday’s vote was held two days after suspected gunman Mauricio Garcia, 33, killed eight people, including a 3-year-old boy and his parents, before he was killed by a police officer, authorities said.
The measure still faces long odds of making it through the House, where Republicans hold a 86-64 advantage over Democrats. Republicans also control the Senate, 19-12, and the governor’s mansion. Gov. Greg Abbott’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday night on the House bill.
Abbott, who was recently was criticized for calling victims in an earlier shooting “illegal immigrants,” said in a Fox News interview after the mall shooting that his state was focused on addressing the “root cause” by targeting mental health.
“There has been a dramatic increase in the amount of anger and violence that’s taking place in America,” Abbott said. “People want a quick solution. The long-term solution here is to address the mental health issue.”