LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Two gun safety bills have passed out of the Assembly Judiciary Committee and are set to be heard on the Assembly Floor.
Assembly Bill 355 proposes raising the age to buy semiautomatic rifles and shotguns in Nevada from 18 to 21.
Lawmakers said Assembly Bill 355 would make it a gross misdemeanor for anyone under 21 to possess or control a semiautomatic shotgun or rifle. It would also require those weapons to be unloaded and stored in a securely locked container when they're not being used.
First-time offenders who allowed anyone under 21 to use those weapons would be guilty of a category C felony. Second-time offenders could spend one to six years in prison along with a fine of up to $5,000.
Assembly Bill 354 would restrict people from possessing firearms within 100 yards of an election site including polling places and locations where a ballot box is present.
In a hearing last week, Senator Jeff Stone said he was concerned this could make voting locations a target for "a mentally unstable person reacting to intense division in our country."
"There are not enough public safety officials to monitor every polling place," Stone said. "My concern is why not allow people that have lawfully gotten a CCW from a sheriff, following all the safety protocols, to make sure if there is an active shooter at a polling place, at least we have ancillary help to public safety that may not be there to protect the voting public?"
However, Tonya Schardt from Brady United Against Gun Violence said more guns in public doesn't necessarily make us safer.
"I don't think that one should assume that allowing people to carry firearms at a polling location would improve the safety of those there," Schardt said. "I actually think it actually heightens the risk for unlawful activity and increases the danger."
Schardt added there would be exemptions for security and law enforcement officers.
