Kentucky has some of the most permissive gun laws in the country — no permits needed for anyone 21 years or older to carry a concealed firearm. No background checks required for private gun sales. No permit needed for anyone 18 or up to buy a gun.
But Republican Rep. Savannah Maddox from Dry Ridge says that by not allowing 18-year-olds to carry concealed weapons, Kentucky law creates a “dangerous inconsistency.”
She spoke before a Senate committee on her bill to allow 18-, 19- and 20-year-olds to obtain a license to carry concealed firearms.
“Citizens who are aged 18, 19, or 20 can legally vote, sign contracts, join the military, serve in combat, start a family, own a business and possess a firearm,” Maddox said. “Yet under current law, these adults are prohibited from carrying that same firearm concealed for self defense.”
House Bill 312 would allow these younger adults to apply for provisional licenses that would require up to eight hours of a firearm safety and training course and a state and federal background check.
Members of the anti-gun violence group Moms Demand Action testified against the legislation, saying they fear it would encourage more young people to carry guns amidst a gun violence epidemic. Guns were the leading cause of death for kids in Kentucky in 2023, according to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the rate of gun death increased by 31% between 2014 and 2023.
Retired school social worker Kimberly Burris from Lexington asked the committee not to vote for the bill, saying she feared for students already heading down a violent path and believes the bill would make it more difficult to resolve conflicts before they turn violent.
“Many, if not all, legislative leaders say that they respect the work and service of our public school teachers, our school staff, our police, our firefighters and public health nurses and doctors,” Burris said. “Please, if you are sincere, then you must not make it harder for us to do the work that we do.”
Maddox said her bill does not increase access to firearms in Kentucky, where young adults may already purchase and carry them openly. The bill also does not change where a person can carry a gun — they are still prohibited in schools, courthouses, airports and more.
She said the Second Amendment right to bear arms, including concealed weapons, “is a fundamental right, a God given right, a constitutionally protected right, and it is our responsibility as the Kentucky General Assembly to protect that right in our statutes.”
The Senate committee voted to move the bill on for the full Senate to consider. Since it’s already passed through the House and has so far not been amended, the bill needs only pass the full Senate before heading to the governor’s desk. It passed the committee 6-2, with one Republican voting no.
Sen. Danny Carroll, a former police officer from Paducah, simply said as he voted no, “Some things are just best left alone.” Carroll has previously said the state may have gone too far when it passed its permitless concealed carry laws.
Last year, a bill that would have lowered the concealed carry age without the addition of a permit almost passed, but failed to get final approval in the state House. GOP Sen. Aaron Reed of Shelbyville, who sponsored that piece of legislation, presented the bill alongside Maddox.
In an interview with Kentucky Public Radio, Reed confirmed the House was previously unwilling to pass his bill without a few more restrictions on young adults who want to carry concealed firearms. Both he and Maddox confirmed that it is still their end goal to do away with the permitting for younger adults as well.
“They wanted a little bit more training. They wanted a little more responsibility to put there as a hurdle for these 18- to 20-year-olds, to kind of vet them just a little bit,” Reed said. “This is a bill that kind of bridges the gap between.”
Maddox said she is pleased that her bill is close to the finish line, but that she intends to continue pushing for no permits.
“I support full constitutional carry for every citizen who is an adult, but at this point, getting this bill through the House of Representatives … it was an uphill climb to a certain extent, and I feel like my colleagues in the House and Senate are committed to making meaningful advancements on this issue,” Maddox said.
House lawmakers passed another bill this week that shields gun manufacturers and sellers from lawsuits over how those guns are later used. It would also prevent local governments from imposing liability on gun sellers because of how a buyer misuses or modifies their gun. Democrats strongly objected to the legislation but were easily overruled by the Republican supermajority. It’s another piece of legislation on its way to the Senate.
