(WBAP/KLIF) — Gun owners and gun safety advocates are inching towards common ground on the issue of access to firearms in the wake of recent mass shootings.
North Texans feel that something needs to be done in relation to AR-15 style rifles. As DFW deals with the pain of the Allen Premium Outlet Mall shooting, parents are planning a protest next week at the Texas State Capitol in Austin to call for gun safety laws. Residents in the Metroplex are sounding off on the issue of restricting AR-15 style rifles coined “assault weapons”. However, the Biden Administration, nor the head of the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms have been willing to clearly define the term “assault weapon”. Many assume the term is for the look depicted in an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle.
Elected officials are also weighing in on gun reform legislation as Texans mourn the loss of life in Allen. Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker feels state lawmakers need to put aside partisanship to make Texas safer.
The Republican two-term mayor believes raising the age to purchase the weapon to 21 could make a difference, but also feels magazine capacity, ammunition limits, and other measures should be on the bargaining table.
House Bill 2744, which aimed to raise the legal age to buy and semi-automatic rifle to 21, passed committee, however died after missing a deadline for debate on the house floor. With less than three weeks remaining in the legislative session, hope is waning a bill will be introduced, much less passed. So far in the 88th Texas Legislative Session, lawmakers have not advanced any bills restricting the sale of semi-automatic rifles.
Listen to WBAP/KLIF reports:
(Copyright 2023 WBAP/KLIF Newsroom News. All rights reserved.)
