Walmart raises minimum age to buy guns and ammo to 21



Walmart announced Wednesday that it's raising the age restriction for the purchase of all guns and ammunition to 21 years old.

Walmart is reportedly the single largest seller of guns in the United States.

The announcement came hours after Dick's Sporting Goods announced it would stop selling assault-style rifles at its stores and any guns or ammo to people under 21.

In 2015, Walmart ended the sale of "modern sporting rifles," including the AR-15. It only sells handguns in Alaska.

"We take seriously our obligation to be a responsible seller of firearms and go beyond Federal law by requiring customers to pass a background check before purchasing any firearm," Walmart said in a statement. "The law would allow the sale of a firearm if no response to a background check request has been received within three business days, but our policy prohibits the sale until an approval is given."



Walmart said it will make the change "as quickly as possible," and is also removing toys that look like assault-style rifles from its website.

"Our heritage as a company has always been in serving sportsmen and hunters, and we will continue to do so in a responsible way," the company said.