Changes await Kentucky bill lowering concealed-carry age to 18

A controversial bill in the state legislature that would allow people as young as 18 to carry a concealed gun in Kentucky without formal training is going to undergo some changes, Senate President Robert Stivers said Tuesday.

Stivers, in a briefing with reporters after the Senate session, would not identify the specific changes, but he indicated lawmakers are looking at raising the age for permitless concealed carry to 21 and above and deciding whether those with emergency protective orders and others should qualify under the legislation.

Police officials and gun-safety trainers have expressed concern about the bill, saying they favor the current law that requires Kentuckians to be at least 21 to get a permit to carry a concealed deadly weapon after completing a training course.

Senate Bill 7 is being sponsored by Sen. Albert Robinson, R-London. He is chairman of Senate Veterans, Military Affairs and Public Protection Committee, which Stivers said is expected to consider the measure Thursday. He said a full vote in the Senate is expected next week.

Asked how the original bill increases public safety by allowing people as young as 18 to carry concealed guns without a permit, Stivers, R-Manchester, said, “You need to wait to see what the amended bill looks like.”

Asked whether people with court orders against them will be allowed to carry concealed guns without permits, the Senate president said, “I think there is an amendment that is going to be filed. We are working on that.”

One of the sponsors of the bill, Democratic Sen. Dennis Parrett of Elizabethtown, formally withdrew his support for the bill Tuesday.

This story was originally published February 7, 2017 at 6:17 PM with the headline "Changes await Kentucky bill lowering concealed-carry age to 18."