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Texas House panel advances bill to raise age to buy semi-automatic rifles
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Texas House panel advances bill to raise age to buy semi-automatic rifles

A House committee in Texas advanced a measure Monday that would raise the minimum age to buy semi-automatic rifles in an unexpected shift after nine people died in a shooting at a Dallas-area outlet mall over the weekend.

Politics

A House committee in Texas advanced a measure Monday that would raise the minimum age to buy semi-automatic rifles in an unexpected shift after nine people died in a shooting at a Dallas-area outlet mall over the weekend.

The Select Committee on Community Safety approved the measure on an 8-5 vote, with two Republicans backing the Democratic bill. The measure is sponsored by Rep. Tracy King, who represents Uvalde, where an 18-year-old gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school last May.

Under the bill’s provisions, the minimum age to purchase a semi-automatic rifle with a detachable magazine and with a caliber greater than .22 would be raised from 18 to 21.

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King and Reps. Sam Harless and Justin Holland, the two Republicans who backed the legislation, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday night.

Several states, mostly Democratic-led, have raised the minimum purchasing age for semi-automatic rifles in recent years.

Monday's vote was held two days after suspected gunman Mauricio Garcia, 33, killed eight people, including a 3-year-old boy and his parents, before he was killed by a police officer, authorities said.

The measure still faces long odds of making it through the House, where Republicans hold an 86-64 advantage over Democrats. Republicans also control the Senate, 19-12, and the Governor's Mansion.

Gov. Greg Abbott’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday night.

Abbott, who was recently criticized for calling victims in an earlier shooting “illegal immigrants,” said in a Fox News interview after the mall shooting that Texas was focused on addressing the “root cause” by targeting mental health.

“There has been a dramatic increase in the amount of anger and violence that’s taking place in America,” Abbott said. “People want a quick solution. The long-term solution here is to address the mental health issue.”