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Assault weapons legislation in the United States


Assault weapons legislation in the United States refers to bills and laws (active, 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. In general, there is no clear definition of an "assault weapon." Nonetheless, "assault weapons" are often considered to be semiautomatic firearms with a large magazine, as first defined in a 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Ban (AWB)."

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). Seven U.S. states have assault weapons bans: three were enacted before the 1994 federal ban and four more passed before the federal ban expired. The majority of states, forty-three, have no assault weapons ban, although two, Minnesota and Virginia, have training and background check requirements for purchasers of assault weapons that are more stringent than those for ordinary firearms. While there are no statewide assault weapon bans in Colorado and Illinois, local bans exist in certain cities or counties in each of these states.

The 1994 federal and 1989 state ban in California were prompted by the 1989 in Stockton, California. Existing and proposed weapon bans come under renewed interest in the wake of mass shootings, most recently after the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. In addition to state bans, Washington, D.C. and some U.S. counties and municipalities have assault weapons laws.

In January 1989, , using a semi-automatic replica of an AK-47 assault rifle. Five children died. President George H.W. Bush banned the import of semiautomatic rifles in March 1989, and made the ban permanent in July. The assault weapons ban tried to address public concern about mass shootings while limiting the impact on recreational firearms use.


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