Just days after suing, FPC and NRA seek an immediate injunction or judgment against Pennsylvania's unconstitutional carry-license ban for 18-to-20-year-old adults.

PHILADELPHIA (November 2, 2026) — Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) announced today that it filed a motion for preliminary injunction or, alternatively, summary judgment in Maines v. Bethel, asking the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania to immediately block Pennsylvania's unconstitutional ban on issuing firearm carry licenses to peaceable adults under 21—or enter judgment against the Commonwealth outright.

The motion comes just days after FPC, the National Rifle Association (NRA), and FPC member Daniel Maines filed their lawsuit challenging Pennsylvania's age-based carry restrictions. It asks the court to enforce the Second Amendment rights of 18-to-20-year-old adults in light of binding precedent that FPC already secured against Pennsylvania in the Third Circuit.

Pennsylvania generally requires a carry license to carry a concealed firearm, carry a firearm in a vehicle, or carry a firearm on Philadelphia's public streets. But the Commonwealth categorically prohibits adults under 21 from even applying for those licenses. The consequences are severe: Peaceable adults who are otherwise legally eligible to possess firearms face criminal prosecution, potentially including felony charges and years in prison, for exercising the same rights available to other adults.

The ban's impact extends even further because of the federal Gun-Free School Zones Act (18 U.S.C. § 922q), which generally prohibits firearm possession within 1,000 feet of school grounds without a qualifying state-issued license or another applicable exception. By refusing to issue carry licenses to 18-to-20-year-old adults, Pennsylvania also denies them access to that federal licensing exception, creating a massive network of criminally restricted areas across the Commonwealth.

“Pennsylvania has already lost this constitutional fight twice in the Third Circuit, and the Supreme Court refused to bail it out,” said FPC President Brandon Combs. “The courts have made clear that 18-to-20-year-old adults are part of ‘the people’ protected by the Second Amendment. Yet Pennsylvania still refuses to let these peaceable adults get the licenses they need to defend themselves in their own cars, on Philadelphia's streets, and across countless public places swallowed up by federal school zones. That's not a technicality. It's an immoral, government-created trap that threatens Americans with prison for exercising their rights. We're asking the court to shut this ban down now—or enter judgment against Pennsylvania outright. FPC and our Grassroots Army will continue to Fight Forward until these unconstitutional age-based bans are eliminated everywhere.”

The motion builds directly on FPC's landmark victory in Lara v. Paris, where the Third Circuit held that 18-to-20-year-old adults are protected by the Second Amendment and rejected Pennsylvania's restrictions on their ability to openly carry firearms during declared emergencies. After initially ruling for FPC in 2024, the court reaffirmed its decision in January 2025. Pennsylvania sought Supreme Court review, but the Court denied that request on June 30, 2026, leaving FPC's victory in place.

In Lara, the Third Circuit recognized that 18-to-20-year-old adults are among “the people” whose rights the Second Amendment protects and found no historical tradition justifying Pennsylvania's age-based carry restrictions. FPC's new motion argues that this binding precedent controls the constitutional question presented in Maines and leaves the Commonwealth without a valid justification for its continuing discrimination.

The filing also draws on the Supreme Court's recent decision in Wolford v. Lopez, emphasizing that courts must consider what firearms restrictions actually mean in practice. Here, Pennsylvania's refusal to issue licenses prevents adults under 21 from carrying firearms for self-defense in Philadelphia, generally carrying in their vehicles, and carrying through expansive federal school zones. The result is a sweeping practical denial of their constitutionally protected right to bear arms in public.

As FPC's motion explains, Pennsylvania's law cannot survive the Supreme Court's historical-tradition test. The Third Circuit has already examined the relevant history in Lara, including founding-era militia laws that required 18-year-old Americans to be armed, and rejected the Commonwealth's attempt to justify age-based restrictions. FPC argues that Pennsylvania cannot overcome that binding precedent with the same historical theories the courts have already rejected.

FPC's nationwide campaign against unconstitutional age-based restrictions has already produced major victories, including the Eighth Circuit's decision striking down Minnesota's carry-permit ban in Worth v. Jacobson and the Fifth Circuit's decision rejecting the federal handgun-sales ban for adults under 21 in Reese v. ATF. FPC is also pursuing relief against Louisiana's age-based carry-permit ban in Pool v. Besson, along with other challenges across the country.

In Maines, FPC is asking the district court to immediately enjoin Pennsylvania's 21-year-old carry-license requirement. Alternatively, because binding appellate precedent has already established the governing constitutional principles, FPC is asking the court to grant summary judgment and resolve the merits in the plaintiffs' favor.

FPC thanks its Grassroots Army members and supporters for making this critical case possible. Individuals who want to join the FPC Grassroots Army and support this work to restore liberty throughout the United States can join the FPC Grassroots Army at JoinFPC.org.

About Firearms Policy Coalition

Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) is a nonprofit membership organization that exists to create a world of maximal individual liberty and eliminate unconstitutional gun control laws. FPC works—and wins—for the People through high-impact strategic litigation, groundbreaking research, legislative and regulatory advocacy, grassroots activism, education, and public engagement. FPC’s legal division, FPC Law, is the nation’s leading initiative dedicated to restoring the right to keep and bear arms across the United States. To learn more about how FPC is working—and winning—for the People, sign up for FPC news alerts at firearmspolicy.org and follow FPC on X, Instagram, and Facebook.