New York teachers and most school employees will be banned from carrying guns on school property under a bill signed into law today by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Schools in the state could previously allow anyone with written permission to carry a firearm onto school grounds.
Under the new gun law, only school security guards, resource officers or law enforcement officers will be permitted to carry firearms in schools.
The law pushes back against the National Rifle Association and President Donald Trump, who advocated for arming teachers with firearms after the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., that killed 17 students and staff.
The New York Rifle and Pistol Association had also pushed for trained teachers to be able to carry guns in schools.
Cuomo and the Democratic-controlled state Legislature disagreed.
“The answer to the gun violence epidemic plaguing this country has never been and never will be more guns, and today we’re expanding New York’s nation-leading gun safety laws to further protect our children,” Cuomo said today.
The governor also signed a bill that directs New York State Police to strengthen gun buyback programs and create new programs to collect illegal, unsecured, abandoned or unwanted firearms.
Cuomo has now signed into law a package of six gun-control bills this week, including one that extends the period for background checks on gun purchases.
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