Protect Children Through Safe Gun Ownership Act

Protect Children Through Safe Gun Ownership Act would make several changes aimed at increasing supervision, storage safety, and oversight around firearms as they relate to minors. The bill tightens requirements for a parent’s or guardian’s written consent for a juvenile to possess a handgun, adds a federal offense and civil liability for leaving unsecured firearms (especially when they have moved in interstate commerce), imposes civil penalties and regulatory steps tied to such violations, creates a grant program to fund storage- and safety-focused education for parents, and requires annual reporting on implementation. In short, it seeks to reduce juvenile access to unsecured firearms through stricter consent rules, stricter storage requirements with penalties, and federal support for parental education on safe storage. Potential impacts include greater responsibility on parents/guardians and gun owners to supervise and securely store firearms, new avenues for civil litigation in cases of unsecured firearms, increased regulatory oversight tied to background checks, and a federal-funded education program for storage safety that emphasizes state storage laws as a condition for grant eligibility. The bill does not create a universal ban on juvenile handgun possession, but it does raise the bar for consent, supervision, and secure storage, while tying certain federal penalties and enforcement mechanisms to storage practices.