New York changes rules for buying guns

New Yorkers under the age of 21 will be banned from buying semi-automatic rifles under a new law signed Monday by Cathy Hokul. The state was one of the first to adopt a gun control initiative after a spate of mass shootings with fatalities, reports ABC News.

Hokul signed 10 bills related to public safety. Including micro-stamping on new firearms. This will help law enforcement agencies solve crimes.

The New York governor also overhauled the state's red flag law, which allows courts to seize guns from people who pose a threat to themselves or others.

“In New York, we are taking bold, decisive action. We are tightening laws to keep guns away from dangerous people,” Hokul said at a press conference in the Bronx.

The New York Legislature passed the bills last week. The reason for the change was the recent mass shootings involving 18-year-old criminals using semi-automatic rifles. Ten people died in a racist attack on a supermarket in Buffalo on May 14th. 10 days later, a Texas school shooting killed 19 children and two teachers.

On the subject: In New York, a school exam in US history was canceled: they are afraid to hurt feelings because of the mass shooting in Buffalo

The quick action in New York showed a sharp divergence between Republican and Democratic leaders on how to respond to gun violence.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said after the massacre of children in Uvalda that the government should increase safety in schools and devote resources to mental health. But at the same time, the Republican said that stricter gun laws are ineffective.

Persons aged 18 and over will continue to be allowed to own other types of long guns, including shotguns and bolt action rifles.

Part of the new law will also require all buyers of semi-automatic rifles to obtain a license.

Until today, it was required only for the purchase of pistols.

A proposed federal law requiring purchasers of semi-automatic weapons to be 21 years old is moving forward in the US House of Representatives. However, not everyone in the Senate is unanimous.

Several states require people to be 21 years of age to purchase any firearm. Including Florida, which raised the age to legally purchase a rifle after a 19-year-old shooter killed 17 people in high school.

The Governor said New York will continue to invest in preventing gun crime by continuing to strengthen laws.

“Today is just the beginning, it’s not the end yet,” Hokul promised. Thoughts and prayers won't fix it, but decisive action will. We will do this for the lives lost, for the parents who will no longer see their children get off the school bus.”