Removes Texas’s existing 500-foot gun-free buffer zone around K-12 schools for permitless carriers. Eliminates safety training requirements for concealed carry in public spaces near school grounds. Texas was the site of the Uvalde school shooting in 2022 — 19 children and 2 teachers killed.
The federal Gun-Free School Zones Act (GFSZA) prohibits knowingly possessing a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school. Texas’s law allows permitless carry within 500 feet. There is a federal exemption for people with a state-issued license — but permitless carriers do not have a license, which is the point of permitless carry. This creates a direct conflict between state and federal law that will be litigated.
On May 24, 2022, a gunman entered Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas and killed 19 children and 2 teachers. He purchased his AR-15-style rifles legally at an age when Texas law allowed it. The Texas legislature’s response since Uvalde has been to expand gun rights, not restrict them. This bill continues that pattern.