KY Legislature Passes Bill Expanding Concealed Carry to 18-20-Year-Olds

The Kentucky Senate followed in the House’s footsteps and passed legislation allowing 18-20 year-olds to carry concealed for self-defense.

The Louisville Courier Journal noted that the legislation, HB 312, passed in the Senate on March 20, 2026, with a 30-17 vote. It had previously passed in the House by a vote of 73-17.

HB 312 would allow 18-20 year-olds to acquire concealed carry licenses and, subsequently, carry firearms on their persons.

State Rep. Savannah Maddox (R) sponsored HB 312. She posted to X:

Citizens who are 18, 19, and 20 years old are legally recognized as full adults. They can vote in the elections that shape our future, sign binding contracts, join the military, get deployed overseas—and even give their lives for our country. They can start families, launch businesses, and they can own and possess firearms. Yet under current law, these adults are prohibited from carrying that same firearm concealed for self-defense. This creates a dangerous inconsistency: we recognize their adulthood and the responsibilities that come with it in every other area, but we deny them the ability to protect themselves and their loved ones when they step outside their homes. HB 312 would finally fix this injustice by allowing law-abiding Kentuckians aged 18 to 20 to obtain a concealed carry license that operates the same as Kentucky’s standard concealed carry license, ensuring reciprocity agreements with other states are maintained.

HB 312 now goes to Gov. Andy Beshear’s (D) desk.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and the director of global marketing for Lone Star Hunts. He holds a PhD in Military History with a focus on the Vietnam War (brown water navy), U.S. Navy since Inception, the Civil War, and Early Modern Europe. He enjoys reading Philosophy and novels by Jack Carr and Nelson DeMille. Follow him on X: @awrhawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.