Senator Farmer's New Bill to Crack Down on Assault Weapons

Senator Farmer's New Bill to Crack Down on Assault Weapons

FL elected officials starkly divided over gun rights

Jim McCool
Jim McCool
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December 28, 2021

While COVID-19 mandates have consumed Florida politics for almost two years, gun issues have never ceased to be debated, and the push to ban "assault weapons" presses forward.  Now, State Senator Gary Farmer (D-34) is proposing a new bill to crack down on assault weapons.

After months of drafting, Farmer's SB 214 is now ready for this upcoming year's legislative session, after being filed as early as September of this year.  The bill intends to impose new state-wide regulations on assault weapons, such as the selling and possession of assault weapons or large capacity magazines.

The language of the legislation reads as follows:

"Assault Weapons and Large-capacity Magazines; Prohibiting the sale or transfer of an assault weapon or a large-capacity magazine; prohibiting possession of an assault weapon or a large-capacity magazine; requiring certificates of possession for assault weapons or large-capacity magazines lawfully possessed before a specified date; providing conditions for continued possession of such weapons or large-capacity magazines; specifying circumstances in which the manufacture or transportation of assault weapons or large-capacity magazines is not prohibited, etc."

Although the bill seems drastic in the eyes of gun-owning Americans and supporters of the Second Amendment, Florida Democrats seem to be showing solidarity with Senator Farmer on the issue.  The bill's co-sponsors are Senator Shevrin Jones (D-35), Senator Tina Polsky (D-29), Senator Annette Taddeo (D-40), and Senator Lauren Book (D-32).
SB 214 would be a massive change of pace for the pro-gun narrative coming out of Republican elected officials.  Recently, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) expressed that he would sign a bill legalizing the carrying of firearms without a permit, in response to State Rep. Anthony Sabatini's (R-32) HB 103.
If passed, HB 103 "Removes requirement that license to carry a concealed firearm is required in order to carry such firearm," along with limiting areas that prohibit concealed carry.  The gun debate is all but over in Florida.

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Jim McCool

Jim McCool

Jim is a graduate of Florida State University where he studied Political Science, Religion and Criminology. He has been a reporter for the Floridian since January of 2021 and will start law school in 2024.

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