Adults under 21 years old can now obtain concealed carry permits in the Hawkeye State.
On Friday, Republican Governor Kim Reynolds signed House File 924 into law. The legislation lowers the minimum age to legally carry a concealed firearm. It also lowers the age at which it becomes illegal to sell a used gun to another person. Both are now set at 18.
“I joined the Marines when I was 18, I graduated from boot camp when I was 18. I was carrying firearms in the military, ready to defend my country when I was 18, along with hundreds of thousands of other young men and women,” Republican Representative Steven Holt, who sponsored the bill, told The Des Moines Register. “So the idea that an 18-year-old, a 19-year-old, a 20-year-old, doesn’t have a right to own a firearm in protection of their families—which is really what the Second Amendment is about, right?”
The law is a win for gun-rights activists, who have been fighting a nationwide campaign to eliminate gun restrictions for 18-to-20-year-olds. That fight has mostly been confined to the courts in recent years, but Iowa’s new law shows gun-rights activists can also move legislation.
They celebrated the law as a sign of progress, with the NRA saying it “ensures that young adults are able to exercise their inherent right to self-defense.” The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms said it’s hoping the legislative win carries over into other states.
“This is a major victory for young adults in Iowa, and it could have a future ripple effect which other states can follow,” Andrew Gottlieb, the group’s managing director, said in a statement. “It recognizes that citizens in the 18-to-20-year age group should have full rights, since they can already enlist in the military, get married, start businesses, run for office, sign contracts, buy homes and vote. Why shouldn’t young adults be able to own and carry a sidearm for personal protection?”
However, not everyone was happy with the bill. Gun-control proponents decried it as dangerous.
“Lowering the age to purchase handguns won’t save any lives,” State Senator Art Staed, a Democrat, told The Register. “It will cost lives. Let’s keep this common sense safeguard in Iowa in place. Let’s keep the age at 21.”
The gun rights of 18-wo-20-year-olds have been hotly contested for a long time. Federal courts have handed down dueling rulings on whether they can buy or carry firearms in recent years.
In January, a Fifth Circuit panel ruled the federal ban on gun dealers selling to them was unconstitutional. Meanwhile, in February, a federal judge upheld Hawaii’s ban on selling or transferring guns to them. The Eleventh Circuit did the same about a month later.
Iowa’s law doesn’t challenge the federal restriction on licensed gun dealers, which still can’t sell guns to those under 21 in the state. Still, gun-rights activists called the bill a good start.
“All good things begin with a first step, and Iowa has set a course for others to follow,” Gottlieb said. “This is a responsible move by Iowa lawmakers.”
