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Hochul proposed several proposals to close loopholes and strengthen gun laws in New York, including raising the age to purchase rifles to 21.
“How does an 18-year-old purchase an AR-15 in the State of New York, State of Texas? That person's not old enough to buy a legal drink,” she said. “I want to work with the legislature to change that. I want it to be 21. I think that's just common sense.”
Other measures taken by Hochul's administration include having state police troopers visit children at New York schools, and having the Interstate Task Force on Illegal Guns ramp up efforts to take back weapons.
Hochul also convened an emergency meeting of the state’s School Safety Improvement Team, which includes these agencies:
- State Police;
- State Education Department;
- Division of Homeland Security;
- Division of Criminal Justice Services.
“The horrific shooting of 19 children and two teachers in Texas, not even two weeks after the mass murder of ten New Yorkers in Buffalo, is yet another infuriating reminder of the plague of gun violence facing our nation," Hochul said.
"My administration will continue working to strengthen the gun laws in our state and put an end to these horrific acts, so that everyone—from schoolchildren to those shopping for groceries to those visiting houses of worship—can live without fear that their lives will be cut short by a weapon of war.”
Hochul said that New Yorkers "must harness that outrage, and that anger, and that disgust, that there could be someone with such wanton evil in their heart, that they would acquire an AR-15, go to a schoolyard after shooting their own grandmother, and opening up on innocent children and teachers.
“I want state police patrols visiting our schools, doing daily check-ins, every single day from today until the end of the school year,” the governor continued. "Because I want parents who have enough to worry about in their daily lives, the cost of gas at the pump, the cost of the groceries. Maybe putting aside a little money for college tuition.
“They have enough to worry about. Let them know that the State Police and their local law enforcement are going to be there to protect them, both uniformed and plain-clothes officers. But let's talk about getting these weapons off our streets.”
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