--- title: Rick Scott Proposes Raising Age Limit for Buying a Firearm description: Florida Governor Rick Scott announced on Friday that is proposing raising the age limit in the state for buying a firearm to the age of 21. canonical: https://time.com/5172933/florida-age-limit-buying-a-firearm/ author: Alana Abramson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-02-23T17:23:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-12T21:44:05.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Fla. Governor Proposes Raising the Age Limit for Buying a Firearm og:description: "We must come together and even cross party lines" og:url: https://time.com/5172933/florida-age-limit-buying-a-firearm/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27ad481fa70541b8/6989280c656a3fbe90bd394c/florida-rick-scott-christopher-wray-resign.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Shooting At High School In Parkland, Florida Injures Multiple People og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Fla. Governor Proposes Raising the Age Limit for Buying a Firearm twitter:description: "We must come together and even cross party lines" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt27ad481fa70541b8/6989280c656a3fbe90bd394c/florida-rick-scott-christopher-wray-resign.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Florida's Governor Proposes Raising the Age Limit for Buying a Firearm > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=42ffccdc-12b5-4289-802e-635b9ce4a5b3&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Florida School Shooting Survivors Are Rallying for Gun Control [Watch (HLS stream): Florida School Shooting Survivors Are Rallying for Gun Control](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/RAqwxyig.m3u8) (2:08)  _Published 2018-02-21. This week, students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. — where a 19-year-old gunman opened fire and killed 17 people one week ago — traveled roughly 450 miles northwest to state capital Tallahassee to make their voices heard._  by [Alana Abramson](https://time.com/author/alana-abramson/)  ## Alana Abramson Updated: Dec 12, 2023 9:44 PM UTCPublished: Feb 23, 2018 5:23 PM UTC This week, students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. — where a 19-year-old gunman opened fire and killed 17 people one week ago — traveled roughly 450 miles northwest to state capital Tallahassee to make their voices heard.  by [Alana Abramson](https://time.com/author/alana-abramson/)  ## Alana Abramson Updated: Dec 12, 2023 9:44 PM UTCPublished: Feb 23, 2018 5:23 PM UTC Florida Governor Rick Scott announced on Friday that he wants to raise the age limit in the state for buying a firearm to the age of 21, just one week after a 19-year-old shot allegedly 17 people at a high school in the state. Scott also said Florida would completely ban bump stocks, which dramatically increase semi-automatic weapons’ potential rate of fire, and prohibit the mentally ill from accessing weapons. “We will require all individuals purchasing firearms to be 21 or older,” Scott said Friday. “There will be exceptions for active duty, reserved military and spouses, national guard members and law enforcement.” Scott’s announcement was part of his comprehensive plan to address school safety in the wake of last week’s shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. The plan, which he said he wanted to implement within the next two weeks, covers gun laws, school safety, and mental health. He said he had spent the week meeting with survivors of the shooting, including the students who came to Tallahassee to lobby for gun control measures. (While the students were there, the Florida House declined to take up legislation to ban assault rifles.) “This is a time when I believe we must come together and even cross party lines,” said Scott. ” I want to encourage people to keep listening to each other.” Noting that Nikolas Cruz, who allegedly shot 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, had been flagged by law enforcement but was still able to buy guns, Scott said he wanted to make it “virtually” impossible for anyone who is a danger to themselves or others to have access to a gun. He said the state would create a program called the “violent threat restraining order,” which would prohibit a mentally ill person from buying a weapon when law enforcement or a family member provides evidence to the court of a threat of violence involving any weapons. He also said he wants the state to invest a half billion dollars in school safety and mental health initiatives, even if it requires foregoing tax cuts. “Government does not have to be slow or lethargic,” he said. “When it comes to protecting our kids we need to be swift and decisive.” Scott, who is strongly considering a run for Senate, had received criticism in the wake of the shooting after he declined to initially address gun control measures, and failed to appear at the Wednesday’s CNN town hall with survivors of the shooting. He is a member of the National Rifle Association, who had given him an A+ rating for his pro-gun stances, and noted in [in 2014](https://www.nraila.org/articles/20140623/alert-governor-rick-scott-makes-history-signing-5-pro-gun-bills) that he had signed “more pro-gun bills into law — in one term — than any other Governor in Florida history.” The NRA did not immediately respond to request for comment. Scott reaffirmed his membership in the NRA on Friday, along with his support for the Second Amendment. ## Transcript [00:00] Dear Congress, why does my 10 year old brother need [00:02] to know how to protect himself from being murdered. [00:03] [ APPLAUSE ] Dear Congress, why am I afraid to send [00:04] my 10 year old brother [00:12] to school. [ APPLAUSE ] Dear Congress, why is my ten [00:19] year old brother braver than me? On the day after the [00:22] shooting he said, Cheryl, I'm gonna go to school. I'm [00:25] not afraid. I won't die, I promise. [ APPLAUSE ] [00:28] Thoughts and [00:33] prayers as your remedy, but refuse to take action. [00:36] [ CROSSTALK ] Well, [00:40] members of the legislature, I'm proud to announce I [00:43] took your advice. I have been praying. I have been [00:46] praying for you. I pray you look in the mirror and figure [00:50] out your priorities. [ APPLAUSE ] [00:54] I pray that you sign the no NRA money pledge. And [01:02] should you continue to choose your wallets over our [01:05] lives, I pray you enjoy retirement. Because [01:13] we will vote you out. You adults [01:17] have failed us by not creating a safer place for your [01:19] children to go to school. So we, the next generation, [01:22] will not fail our own kids. We will make this change [01:26] happen. Mental health is a global issue, so why are [01:29] school shootings just an issue in America [ APPLAUSE ]. [01:31] You are the cavelry we're been waiting for. So to you, [01:34] let's do it! Do your sit ins! Do your null ballot [01:36] demonstrations! Do your protest! Do not let anyone [01:38] turn you around! If you cannot [01:45] fly, I [01:50] tell you right now, run! If you cannot run, [01:54] I tell you to walk! If you cannot [01:58] walk, I tell you to crawl! Well whatever you do, make [02:03] sure you move forward. 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