Greg Abbott signed a 2021 law barring Texas governments from doing business with banks that limit their dealings with the firearm industry; a Wharton economist found the largest lenders left the Texas municipal bond market, and that the law and a companion measure cost Texas taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars in extra interest. The same month he signed the law that lets most Texans 21 and older carry a handgun with no license, training or state background check.
Abbott opposed letting only adults 21 and older buy semi-automatic rifles after the Uvalde school shooting, even as 76% of Texas voters backed raising the age for any gun. He also urged Congress in May 2025 to finish the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which cut the federal tax on silencers and short-barreled guns to $0 and led to the end of their federal registration.
Greg Abbott's Gun Laws and Positions
- Abbott Signed a 2021 Law Against Banks That Limit Gun Business, and Texas Borrowing Costs Rose. On June 14, 2021, Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 19, which bars Texas state and local governments from contracting with financial firms that limit business with the firearm industry; he signed a similar law aimed at firms that avoid fossil fuels the same day, NPR reported. Wharton economist Daniel Garrett found that the top five lenders in the Texas municipal bond market left it rather than drop their policies on making AR-15-style weapons, the kind used in the Uvalde school shooting, and estimated that the two laws were costing Texans "an extra 300- to $500 million so far this year in extra interest," NPR reported in August 2022.
- Abbott Signed the 2021 Law Letting Most Texans Carry Handguns Without a License or Training. On June 16, 2021, Greg Abbott signed House Bill 1927, which lets Texans 21 and older who are not barred by law from having a gun carry a handgun in public without a license. Since September 2021, most Texans 21 or older without certain convictions may carry a holstered handgun in public with no training, no permit and no state-run background check, the Associated Press reported. Houston's assistant police chief warned that more guns in public would mean more guns stolen from cars, after nearly 3,000 were stolen from vehicles in Houston the year before.
- Abbott Opposed Raising the Age to Buy Semi-Automatic Rifles to 21, While 76% of Texas Voters Backed Raising It for All Guns. As families of the children killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde pressed lawmakers in 2023 to raise the age for buying a semi-automatic rifle to 21, Greg Abbott opposed the proposal and called it unconstitutional, the Texas Tribune reported on May 3, 2023. A University of Texas at Austin poll released that day found that 76% of Texas voters supported raising the legal age to buy any firearm to 21 and 20% opposed it; Republicans backed the change 64% to 31%.
- The Law Abbott Urged Congress to Finish Cut the Tax on Silencers and Short-Barreled Guns to $0. On May 22, 2025, Greg Abbott said of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that "there is more work yet to be done to get this legislation to the finish line." Section 70436 of the law sets the federal National Firearms Act tax to $0 for silencers and short-barreled rifles and shotguns. Everytown estimates the change will cost about $1.7 billion in tax revenue over ten years. In August 2026 a federal judge in Texas ruled that the $0 tax removed the constitutional basis for regulating those weapons under the National Firearms Act, and in October 2026 the Justice Department said it would no longer enforce their registration; that registry helps ATF agents trace who owned a gun, CBS News reported.
What Greg Abbott's Gun Record Means for Texas
- Texas adults can carry handguns with no safety training. Since the 2021 law, a Texan 21 or older can carry a handgun in public with no training and no license, and Houston police leaders warned the AP that untrained carriers may fire when deadly force is not legally allowed.
Frequently Asked Questions About Greg Abbott on Guns
What is Greg Abbott's record on guns under Trump?
Greg Abbott signed the 2021 laws that allow permitless carry in Texas and punish banks that limit gun-industry business, the second of which drove top lenders from the Texas bond market and raised borrowing costs. He opposed raising the age to buy semi-automatic rifles after Uvalde despite 76% public support, and he urged Congress to finish the federal law that cut the silencer tax to $0, after which the Justice Department stopped enforcing registration of those weapons.
Did Greg Abbott sign permitless carry in Texas?
Yes. Greg Abbott signed House Bill 1927 on June 16, 2021. The Associated Press reported that the law made Texas the largest state with a permitless carry law.
Does Greg Abbott support raising the age to buy a gun to 21?
No. Greg Abbott opposed a 2023 bill that would have barred anyone under 21 from buying a semi-automatic rifle, calling it unconstitutional, the Texas Tribune reported, even though Uvalde families pushed for it and a University of Texas poll found 64% of Texas Republicans supported raising the age for all guns.
Last updated: 2026-10-26