TOPEKA, Kan. — The Kansas Senate has advanced a bill that would lower the legal age to carry concealed firearms in Kansas from 21 to 18.
The Republican-controlled Senate on Thursday voted 30-8 for the bill, which would require permit holders to complete a background check and undergo gun safety training.
People as young as 18 can already carry firearms in the open in Kansas.
The measure would increase the number of university and college students eligible to carry concealed firearms on campus, but education groups say it wouldn't change current laws that allow high schools to prohibit guns on school grounds.
On Wednesday, the Senate rejected amendments from Democrats that included allowing law enforcement to remove firearms from people who pose a danger to themselves or others.
The bill includes a provision from Sen. Richard Hilderbrand, a Galena Republican, that would allow people who have been convicted of crimes including misdemeanor domestic battery to possess firearms after their criminal records are expunged.
The bill would also expand Kansas' recognition of other states' concealed carry permits.
The bill now goes to the House. Last month, the House approved a similar bill, but senators have made changes that the House must review.
