Assault weapons legislation in the United States are bills and laws (active, theoretical, expired, proposed, or failed) that define and restrict or make illegal the manufacture, transfer, and possession of assault weapons. How these firearms are defined and regulated varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction; generally, this constitutes a list of specific firearms and combinations of features on semiautomatic firearms.
The Federal Assault Weapons Ban enacted in 1994 expired in 2004. Attempts to renew this ban have failed, as have attempts to pass a new ban, such as the Assault Weapons Ban of 2013 (AWB 2013). Twelve states with a third of the U.S. population have assault weapons bans: three were enacted before the 1994 federal ban, four more were passed before the federal ban expired, and five passed after the federal ban expired. The majority of states have no assault weapons ban, although two, Minnesota and Virginia, have training and background check requirements for purchasers of assault weapons that are stricter than those for ordinary firearms. On June 4, 2021, and again in 2023, a federal judge struck down the three-decade-long ban in California, though it is pending appeal by the California Attorney General. On July 17, 2026, a federal judge declared New Jersey's assault weapons ban unconstitutional. It was stayed pending the appeal to the Supreme Court. While there are no statewide assault weapon bans in Colorado, local bans exist in certain cities or counties in the state. In addition to state bans, Washington, D.C., and some U.S. counties and municipalities have assault weapons laws.
The 1994 federal and 1989 state ban in California were prompted by the 1989 Cleveland Elementary School shooting in Stockton, California. Over the last few decades, there has been an increase in the use of semi-automatic rifles in mass shootings. At least one rifle was used in about 44% of mass public shootings since the 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting. The U.S. suffers the highest death toll from gun violence among high income countries and the 2023 Covenant School shooting was the 129th such mass shooting in America since the beginning of that year. Existing and proposed weapon legislation often come under renewed interest in the wake of major mass shootings, such as the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
1994 federal assault weapons ban
In January 1989, 34 children and a teacher were shot in Stockton, California. The gunman used a semi-automatic Type 56; five children perished. President George H. W. Bush banned all imports of semi-automatic rifles in March 1989, and made the ban permanent in July 1989. The assault weapons ban tried to address public concern about mass shootings while limiting the impact on recreational firearms use.
In November 1993, the ban passed the United States Senate. The author of the ban, Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), and other advocates said that it was a weakened version of the original proposal. In January 1994, Josh Sugarmann, executive director of the Violence Policy Center, said handguns and assault weapons should be banned. In May of that year, former presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and Ronald Reagan wrote to the United States House of Representatives in support of banning "semi-automatic assault guns". They cited a 1993 CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll that found 77 percent of Americans supported a ban on the manufacture, sale, and possession of such weapons. Rep. Jack Brooks (D-TX), then chair of the House Judiciary Committee, tried to remove the ban from the crime bill but failed.
The Public Safety and Recreational Firearms Use Protection Act, commonly called the federal Assault Weapons Ban (AWB and AWB 1994), was enacted in September 1994. The ban, including a ban on extended-capacity magazines defined as more than ten rounds, became defunct (expired) in September 2004 per a 10-year sunset provision.
Proposed federal assault weapons bans
114th Congress The proposed bill H.R.4269, the Assault Weapons Ban of 2015, was introduced on December 16, 2015, to the 114th United States Congress, sponsored by Representative David N. Cicilline of Rhode Island along with 123 original co-sponsors. It currently has 149 co-sponsors. This legislation states that its purpose is "To regulate assault weapons, to ensure that the right to keep and bear arms is not unlimited, and for other purposes."
The proposed legislation targets various firearm accessories, including the barrel shroud (a safety covering for the barrel of the firearm to prevent the operator from burning his or her hands as the barrel becomes heated after the firing of multiple rounds), pistol grip, and certain types of firearm stocks such as telescoping or collapsing stocks. Also included are lists of various classes and models of firearms, including semi-automatic firearms, AR-15 style rifles, assault weapons, semi-automatic pistols, semi-automatic shotguns, and others, some of which have already been banned or restricted under existing legislation including grenade launchers. The legislation also proscribes magazines which would have a capacity of more than 10 rounds.
117th Congress On July 29, 2022, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Assault Weapons Ban of 2022 (H.R. 1808). The bill is somewhat similar to the Federal Assault Weapons Ban that was in force from 1994 to 2004. It defines certain semi-automatic firearms as assault weapons, and prohibits their manufacture, sale, transfer, or possession. Existing assault weapons would be grandfathered in – that is, they would be legal to possess, and legal to sell or transfer through a federally licensed gun dealer. The bill also exempts law enforcement agencies and retired law enforcement officers.
Defined as an assault weapon is any centerfire semi-automatic rifle with a detachable magazine and one or more of these features: a pistol grip, a forward grip, a folding, telescoping, or detachable stock, a grenade launcher, a barrel shroud, or a threaded barrel. A number of other rifles, shotguns, and pistols are also defined as assault weapons, including some specific makes and models.
Additionally, the proposed law defines magazines that can hold more than 15 rounds of ammunition as large capacity ammunition feeding devices, and prohibits their manufacture, sale, transfer, or possession. Existing magazines that can hold more than 15 rounds would be legal to possess, but not to sell or transfer. Magazines for .22 caliber rimfire ammunition are not included in the ban.
The bill passed the House by a vote of 217 to 213. Voting in favor of the bill were 215 Democrats and 2 Republicans. Voting against it were 208 Republicans and 5 Democrats.
The U.S. Senate has not voted on the bill, as proponents do not have the 60 votes needed to end a filibuster and pass the law.
118th Congress In early 2023, legislation to ban assault weapons was introduced in both the House and Senate, and was cosponsored by a large majority of Democratic legislators in both cases.
State assault weapon bans +U.S. assault weapons bans by jurisdiction Jurisdiction Status By makeor model Semiautorifles Semiautopistols Shotguns Featurestest Magazinecapacity California In force 10 Connecticut In force 10 Delaware In force 17 District of Columbia In force 10 Hawaii In force 10 (pistols) Illinois In force 10 (15 for handguns) Maryland In force 10 Massachusetts In force 10 New Jersey In force 10 New York In force 10 Rhode Island In force 10 Virginia On hold 15 Washington In force 10
Three U.S. states passed assault weapons bans before Congress passed the federal Assault Weapons Ban of 1994: California in 1989, New Jersey in 1990, and Connecticut in 1993. Four others passed assault weapons bans before AWB 1994 expired in 2004: Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts and New York.
California
California restricts the possession, sale, transfer or import of defined assault weapons to those individuals who possess a Dangerous Weapons Permit issued by the California Department of Justice. In practice, very few Dangerous Weapons Permits are issued, and only under a very limited set of circumstances defined in state DOJ regulations.
1989
In May 1989, California became the first state in the U.S. to pass an assault weapons law, after the January 1989 Cleveland Elementary School shooting in Stockton. The Roberti-Roos Assault Weapons Control Act of 1989, or AWCA, restricted semi-automatic firearms that it classified as assault weapons: over 50 specific brands and models of rifles, pistols, and shotguns to those who were issued a Dangerous Weapons Permit by the California Department of Justice. Since the Department of Justice generally does not give Dangerous Weapons Permits to ordinary citizens, the Roberti-Roos Act amounts to an effective ban on defined assault weapons in California. It also banned magazines able to hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Guns and magazines legally owned at the time the law was passed were grandfathered in if registered with the California Department of Justice.
1999 In March 1999, State Senator Don Perata introduced Senate Bill 23 (SB 23). The bill had three provisions: to make illegal the manufacture, importation, sale or offer, or to give or lend any large-capacity magazine as defined as having the capacity to accept more than ten rounds; the addition of a "generic" definition list to the existing Roberti-Roos legislation; and the exemption to allow on and off duty and retired peace officers the use of assault weapons. They are defined in Penal Code §12276.1 and §30515. The bill was passed and went into effect on January 1, 2000.
Shortly after this was passed, a loophole was discovered. Since the law was written by make and model or the number of features, the loophole was that a detachable magazine was allowed, if it required a tool to remove. This led to the creation of the Bullet Button. The Bullet Button is a device that replaced the standard magazine catch on the rifle and prevented the magazine from being released without a small pointed device inserted into the screw hole. Various designs and other versions of Bullet Button type devices were released and used by millions of Californians.
2016 In December 2015, Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik borrowed a rifle and removed the Bullet Button, making it an illegal configuration. Then went to the San Bernardino Inland Regional Center where they murdered 14 people and injured 22 others.The shooting in California is being investigated as an "act of terrorism" retrieved 13 June 202314 killed and 17 wounded in a terrorist shooting in California retrieved 13 June 2023 This led to a second, stricter version of the original California assault weapons ban SB880, AKA the Bullet Button Ban. This made previously legal configurations of semi-automatic sporting rifles illegal. The owners were given a choice to register the guns as assault weapons with the California DOJ or change the configuration.The US state of Washington has banned the sale of assault weapons retrieved 13 June 2023Automatic rifle and semi-automatic rifle retrieved 17 June 2023
The bill was finalized and passed, then waited for 9 months for the DOJ regulations to enable owners to start the registration process. On the last day of Kamala Harris' tenure, at 2 pm as Attorney General, the laws were updated to include new categories of assault weapons, now including shotguns. This was presented as an emergency approval because the deadline was in 3 hrs.Kamala Harris calls for a ban on assault weapons retrieved 17 June 2023
2021