Florida college students could carry their concealed guns onto campuses and into dorms if a new bill filed Tuesday passes, prompted by a rise in antisemitism across American universities.
Sponsored by Sen. Randy Fine, the sole Jewish Republican in the state Legislature, SB 814 would allow for the possession of firearms at every property owned by Florida colleges or universities, including residence halls. Fine was inspired by the drastic increase in antisemitic incidents on college campuses following Hamas' massacre of Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023.
"The Second Amendment does not take the semester off when you step on a college campus,” Fine said in a press release. “Adults should have the right to protect themselves on campus, particularly after so many universities across America chose to protect Muslim terror advocates over their own students."
Though Fine's bill would legalize concealed firearms on campus, it would allow a college or university to request certain spots be designated "sensitive locations" devoid of guns during sporting events. This request, complete with a security plan, would have to be submitted to and approved by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Fine first announced that he would file a bill allowing "Jewish students to start carrying" in April, as pro-Palestine protests on college campuses were reaching their peak. He doubled down in September after two Jewish students in Pennsylvania were attacked by a man wearing a keffiyeh, a Middle Eastern headscarf, but was quickly rebuffed online by gun safety advocates, including Fred Guttenberg, the father of a 14-year-old murdered at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018.
Guttenberg accused Fine of weaponizing antisemitic attacks to loosen gun restrictions, slamming the lawmaker for voting to abolish concealed carry permits in 2023, calling him a lunatic, and demanding the two debate. Fine declined, insisting he doesn't debate people who call him a lunatic, and promised he would file the legislation.
And now he has.
Fine will resign his Senate seat on March 31 to pursue a vacant congressional seat. Already having won his primary for the red district, he's expected to become the next Congressman of District 6—though that means he will only be present for four weeks of the regular session.
In a text message to The Floridian, he said that while he doesn't know if he will be able to pass his bill before he leaves for Congress, a "number of Senators have told me they support the idea."
The bill comes amid a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents on college campuses, which spiked 700% after the Oct. 7th attacks. From 2022 to 2023, Hillel International reports. From 2022 to 2023, there were 290 antisemitic incidents on campuses compared to 1,854 between 2023 and 2024. Anti-Muslim incidents similarly surged, with the Council on American-Islamic Relations reporting a 300% increase in campus incidents.
