2A/GUNS/NRA/POLITICS: “Florida lawmakers approved a bill Wednesday [3-7-18] that adds the first notable gun restrictions in the firearm-friendly state in decades, three weeks after the deadly school shooting in Parkland, Fla.
The measure passed after lengthy, emotional debate in the state House and Senate. Lawmakers faced intense pressure to act from Republican Gov. Rick Scott and family members of those killed in the Feb. 14 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that left 17 people dead.
On Tuesday, family members of all the shooting victims sent a letter to House members urging them to pass the bill… The 67-to-50 vote Wednesday in the House came as the legislative session nears its end on Friday and two days after the state Senate narrowly passed the bill in a 20-to-18 vote. Support came mostly from Republicans, who control both the House and Senate, but also some Democrats. The measure now goes to Mr. Scott, who backs some of its provisions and opposes others, for his signature… The school-security bill would increase the minimum age to buy any type of gun to 21, from 18, with some exceptions, and requires a three-day waiting period before a buyer can receive a firearm. It bans the sale of bump stocks—devices that allow semiautomatic rifles to perform like fully automatic ones. And it would create a new process for courts to temporarily prevent people deemed a risk from having firearms.
The measure includes $400 million in funding to implement provisions such as increasing mental-health services and bolstering the physical security of school buildings… Gun-rights groups denounced the new firearm restrictions as violating the Second Amendment. Marion Hammer, the National Rifle Association’s Florida lobbyist, implored members to pressure lawmakers to vote against the measure.”
-Arian Campo-Flores, “Florida Lawmakers Approve Gun-Control Bill,” The Wall Street Journal online, Mar. 8, 2018 07:25am