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Assault Rifle Legality by State 2024

Assault Rifle Legality by State 2024

Yes, assault rifles are legal to own in the United States. The United States has some of the loosest gun laws in the world. Therefore, there are lots of types of weapons you can own in the United States, and an assault rifle is definitely one of them. At the same time, assault rifles have not always been legal in the United States.

In 1994, Congress passed the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act which made it basically illegal to manufacture or possess a semiautomatic assault weapon. For several years during the 1990s and early 2000s, this assault weapon ban was in place in the United States. The ban was allowed to expire in 2004 without being renewed, and assault rifles once again became legal in the United States. At the same time, if you are interested in owning an assault rifle, you need to take a look at the laws of your state.

What States Have Legalized Assault Rifles?

The vast majority of states allow assault rifles. States do not have to explicitly allow assault rifles by codifying them into law, but they simply need to not have legislation against them. Because the overwhelming majority of states allow assault rifles to be purchased within their borders, it is easier to name the states that do not allow assault rifles.

There are several states that have a ban on assault weapons. They are California, Connecticut, Delaware, New York, New Jersey, Hawaii, Massachusetts, and Maryland. In addition, the District of Columbia also has an assault weapon ban within its borders. Each of these states has its own rules concerning the registration of already-owned assault weapons, transportation of weapons, and the firearms that are defined as assault weapons. For example, while Hawaii has an assault weapons ban, but it only applies to assault pistols.

Three other states, Minnesota, Virginia, and Washington do not have a ban on assault weapons but do have rules and regulations for their ownership and usage.

Why Are Assault Rifles Controversial?

People argue that it is their right under the Constitution to purchase an assault rifle, and some people believe they need them for self-defense. Those opposed to assault rifle ownership argue that the people who wrote the Constitution never could have envisioned that assault rifles would be invented, and they believe the Constitution should be adjusted to reflect the reality of the danger posed by assault weapons, particularly when in the hands of civilians.

Is the AR-15 an Assault Rifle?

Yes, the AR-15 is considered an assault rifle, one of the most common assault rifles people purchase. The AR-15 has a similar build and look to certain military weapons, but there are distinctive features that differentiate the two. The main distinction would be the semi-automatic nature of the AR-15. Semi-automatic weapons only fire one round per trigger pull, versus a fully automatic assault rifle that can fire multiple. In addition, the abbreviation "AR" in the name does not stand for Assault Rifle. AR is short for ArmaLite, a name referring to the manufacturer of the gun in the 1950s.

Assault Rifle Legality by State 2024

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State
Status
Additional Details
CaliforniaProhibited
California prohibits anyone from possessing an assault weapon (as defined by state law), unless they...
ConnecticutProhibited
Connecticut prohibits any person from possessing an assault weapon unless the weapon was possessed p...
DelawareProhibited
On June 30, 2022, Gov. Carney signed into law the Delaware Lethal Firearms Safety Act of 2022 prohib...
HawaiiProhibited
Hawaii criminalizes the manufacture, possession, sale or other transfer, barter, trade, gift or acqu...
IllinoisProhibited
On January 10, 2023, Illinois became the 9th state to pass comprehensive legislation to generally ba...
MarylandProhibited
Maryland now prohibits the possession, sale, offering of sale, transfer, purchase, receipt, or trans...
MassachusettsProhibited
It is generally unlawful in Massachusetts to sell, offer for sale, transfer or possess an assault we...
MinnesotaProhibited
In 2023, Minnesota extended the waiting period for assault weapon purchases from federally licensed ...
New YorkProhibited
New York’s assault weapon law prohibits manufacturing, transporting, disposing of or possessing an a...
VirginiaProhibited
Virginia law prohibits any person under 18 years of age from knowingly and intentionally possessing ...
WashingtonProhibited
Washington became the 10th state to generally ban the sale and manufacture of assault weapons. Unlik...
New JerseyLegal (specific license required)
Any person seeking to purchase or possess an assault firearm in New Jersey may apply for a license t...
AlabamaLegal
AlaskaLegal
ArizonaLegal
ArkansasLegal
ColoradoLegal
FloridaLegal
GeorgiaLegal
IdahoLegal
IndianaLegal
IowaLegal
Iowa does not regulate assault weapons. However, any person who “sells or offers for sale a manual o...
KansasLegal
KentuckyLegal
LouisianaLegal
MaineLegal
MichiganLegal
MississippiLegal
MissouriLegal
MontanaLegal
NebraskaLegal
NevadaLegal
New HampshireLegal
New MexicoLegal
North CarolinaLegal
North DakotaLegal
OhioLegal
Ohio has no law restricting assault weapons generally. However, Ohio includes within the definition ...
OklahomaLegal
OregonLegal
PennsylvaniaLegal
Rhode IslandLegal
South CarolinaLegal
South DakotaLegal
TennesseeLegal
TexasLegal
Texas has no law restricting assault weapons. As a result, researchers have found, Texas is a major ...
UtahLegal
VermontLegal
West VirginiaLegal
WisconsinLegal
WyomingLegal
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Assault Rifle Legality by State 2024

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