Certain University faculty and staff could carry firearms on campus under a bill that passed its first House committee Tuesday. The measure also makes other changes supporters say are aimed at improving campus safety.
Escambia County Republican Representative Michelle Salzman was taking classes at Florida State University last year during the same semester that a gunman killed two people and injured others in an on-campus shooting. Salzman was part of several group chats with students who were on campus at the time.
“You could tell from a lot of the back and forth that they felt very helpless, and they wanted something. They wanted to help. They wanted to be able to save their friends, and they didn't want to see this happening," she said.
Her bill, in addition to allowing certified guardians to carry a firearm, would also ramp up the penalties for discharging a gun within 1,000 feet of a school, require instructors to undergo school safety training, and aims to increase use of a suspicious activity reporting tool.
The bill received unanimous, bipartisan support at its committee stop, including from Homestead Democratic Representative Kevin Chambliss.
“This is now all too common of a story, and that we here in Florida, if we're, if we're the ones that are taking a step in creating uniformity in this, because it can happen anywhere, at any time. I'm proud of that.”The proposal has two more committee stops in the House