By Tanya Metaksa
What’s New—Federal: Three Fiscal Year 2026 funding bills were approved by a large bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives; Arizona: Two bills, SB1068 and SB1069, were considered by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and Elections on January 14. Georgia: SB204 passed the Senate on January 13 and now goes to Gov. Brian Kemp for his expected signature. Maine: LD1821 was tabled last week and is carried over to January 21, 2016;
Michigan: The House passed HB4284, lowering the Right-to-Carry permit renewal fee from $115 to $30; New Jersey: Two bills from the 2024-2025 session were passed: S.3893/A.4974 prescribing penalties for the sale and possession of “machine gun conversion devices,” and S.3895/A.4976 establishing a new crime of reckless discharge. The governor approved S.1425, but he returned A.4978 with a conditional veto, but the Senate acceded to the governor’s request, and it was passed; North Carolina: On January 12th, the North Carolina House of Representatives again rescheduled the veto override to February 9; Pennsylvania: HB2126 Introduced: it would create a new firearm eligibility license; Virginia: Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) “Lobby Day” is being held on Monday, January 19, 2026, at the Virginia General Assembly, in Richmond. See below for the introduced bills.
Federal
Three Fiscal Year 2026 funding bills were approved by a large bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives. The first funding package, titled the Commerce, Justice, Science, Energy, and Water Development, was approved. The remaining appropriations bills that fund the Interior and Environment Departments for 2026 are expected to be voted on as soon as this week in the U.S. Senate.
NSSF submitted public comments supporting the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC) proposed rule on “Prohibition on Use of Reputation Risk by Regulators,” helping to prevent a future chokehold on the industry’s access to vital financial services.
U.S. Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.), a steadfast supporter of the Second Amendment, hunting, recreational shooting sports, and the firearm and ammunition industry, unfortunately died on January 6, 2026. Throughout his seven terms in Congress, Rep. LaMalfa worked to protect his constituents’ Second Amendment rights and to defend the firearm industry’s ability to engage in lawful commerce in firearms and ammunition, ensuring customers’ rights.
State Legislation
The following legislatures have already opened their legislative sessions:
Jan. 7. Massachusetts
Jan. 12: Arizona, Delaware, Idaho, Kansas, Washington, and Wisconsin
Jan. 13: Illinois, South Dakota
Jan. 14: Maryland
Arizona: Two bills, SB1068 and SB1069, were considered by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary and Elections on January 14. SB1068 prohibits governing boards of higher education institutions from enacting or enforcing policies that prevent citizens from having firearms in locked vehicles on campuses or from prohibiting Right-to-Carry permittees from carrying on campus. SB1069 removes suppressors from the list of Arizona’s prohibited weapons. Similar bills that aimed to prevent citizens from having firearms in locked vehicles on campuses were vetoed by Governor Hobbs.
Florida: HB133 passed the House by a vote of 74-37. It now goes to the Senate.
Georgia: SB204 passed the Senate on Jan. 13 and now goes to Gov. Brian Kemp for his expected signature. The state’s preemption law has been expanded and clarified.
Maine: On January 14, the Maine Judiciary Committee reviewed LD1821, a bill that adds heavy new regulations on firearm dealers and large fines for any violations. The bill is described as promoting “responsible business practices,” but it mainly piles new costs and red tape onto dealers who are already tightly regulated under federal law. Under federal law, ATF already inspects federally licensed dealers, and police can request gun traces, but this bill would allow broad, unsuspicious reviews of dealers’ records, raising privacy and due process concerns. The bill also requires continuing training for dealer employees, with the details set by unelected officials who could make the requirements more complex over time. The Committee tabled the bill. It appears to be carried over to Jan. 21 in the Maine Judiciary Committee.
Michigan: The House passed HB4284, lowering the Right-to-Carry permit renewal fee from $115 to $30. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.
New Jersey: Although it is 2026, the final days of the 2024-2025 legislature are still with us. On Friday, Jan. 9, two holdovers were put on the calendar for action on Monday, Jan. 12. S.3893/A.4974 prescribing penalties for the sale and possession of “machine gun conversion devices,” and S.3895/A.4976 establishing a new crime of reckless discharge, allowing prosecutors to charge any action with a firearm with a new crime. Both bills were passed. The governor approved S.1425, a measure broadening the mental-state standards that apply to firearms‑trafficking crimes and to violations of firearms‑regulatory provisions. Despite its title, critics warn that the law reaches far beyond true trafficking and risks exposing licensed dealers to criminal liability by second‑guessing sales already authorized through federal and state NICS background checks.
In an unexpected turn, Governor Phil Murphy returned A.4978 with a conditional veto, even though the bill’s core aim was to compel the Attorney General to compile and publish data on shootings that do not result in bodily injury. The measure had drawn opposition that argued it was designed to skew statistical baselines to support additional firearm restrictions, and the governor’s veto message effectively echoed concerns that the proposal would sweep in events that should not be counted. The Senate ultimately accepted the governor’s recommended changes and passed the revised A.4978 by a 27–9 vote.
North Carolina: Last Monday, Jan. 12th, the North Carolina House of Representatives again rescheduled the veto override vote on Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to Feb. 9.
Pennsylvania: HB2126 Introduced: it would create a new firearm eligibility license under Title 18 (Crimes Code). To apply for this license, individuals would follow a process similar to the one currently used for concealed carry permits in PA: submitting a prescribed PA State Police form to the county Sheriff (in all non-Philadelphia counties) or, in Philadelphia, the Chief of Police. It is before the House Judiciary Committee.
Virginia: Virginia Citizens Defense League (VCDL) “Lobby Day” is being held today, Monday, Jan. 19, at the Virginia General Assembly, in Richmond. The following bills have been introduced as of January 19.
Senate bills (numerical order)
- SB 27 – Firearm industry “responsible conduct” / PLCAA workaround
Creates broad “responsible conduct” standards and “reasonable controls” duties for firearm manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, covering manufacture, sale, distribution, use, and marketing.
Establishes a wide civil cause of action allowing the Attorney General, local government attorneys, and private individuals to sue for injunctions, damages, and costs, with the stated NRA concern that it is designed to litigate the industry “out of existence” despite federal protections. - SB 38 – Household-based prohibited-person expansion
Expands Virginia’s prohibited-person restrictions so that individuals living in the same household as a prohibited person can lose their own gun rights based solely on that other person’s status or conduct. - SB 38 – Household-based prohibited-person expansion
Expands Virginia’s prohibited-person restrictions so that individuals living in the same household as a prohibited person can lose their own gun rights based solely on that other person’s status or conduct. - SB 115 – Concealed handgun reciprocity/recognition
Paired with HB 24, this bill is described as jeopardizing concealed handgun recognition and reciprocity agreements, potentially impairing Virginia permit holders’ ability to carry in other states while traveling.
SB 38 – Household-based prohibited-person expansion
Expands Virginia’s prohibited-person restrictions so that individuals living in the same household as a prohibited person can lose their own gun rights based solely on that other person’s status or conduct.
SB 115 – Concealed handgun reciprocity/recognition
Paired with HB 24, this bill is described as jeopardizing concealed handgun recognition and reciprocity agreements, potentially impairing Virginia permit holders’ ability to carry in other states while traveling.
House bills (numerical order)
- HB 19 – Expanded misdemeanor prohibitors
Expands the categories of misdemeanor criminal offenses that disqualify individuals from firearm possession, broadening the pool of people who become prohibited persons based on certain misdemeanors. - HB 21 – Firearm industry “responsible conduct” / PLCAA workaround (House companion to SB 27)
Companion to SB 27, imposing “reasonable controls” requirements on firearm manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, and creating a broad civil cause of action enabling suits by the Attorney General, local governments, and private parties over alleged failures to control manufacture, sale, distribution, use, or marketing. - HB 24 – Concealed handgun reciprocity/recognition (with SB 115)
Alters recognition and reciprocity for concealed handgun permits in a way the NRA characterizes as jeopardizing existing agreements and potentially limiting where Virginians with permits can lawfully carry when traveling out of state. - HB 40 – “Ghost gun” / unserialized firearm ban
Prohibits manufacturing firearms without serial numbers, bans transfer and possession of unserialized or plastic firearms, and would penalize people who lawfully bought unfinished frames/receivers before the effective date; the alert frames this as ending the traditional ability to build a lawful firearm at home for personal use. - HB 93 – Household-based prohibited-person expansion (House companion to SB 38)
Extends prohibited-person rules to otherwise lawful gun owners who reside with someone barred from firearm possession, potentially costing them their rights due solely to a co-resident’s status. - HB 110 – Firearms in vehicles
Further restricts the ability of law-abiding individuals to keep firearms in their vehicles for self-defense, tightening existing vehicle carry rules. - HB 207 – $500 suppressor tax
Imposes a $500 tax on the retail sale of firearm suppressors, with proceeds going to the general fund, which NRA-ILA characterizes as a pricing-out tactic aimed at ordinary buyers. - HB 217 – Semi-automatic firearm and magazine ban
Bans specified semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns and imposes arbitrary magazine-capacity limits, with NRA-ILA describing it as an effort to redefine and outlaw firearms in common lawful use—effectively “gun confiscation” in their framing. - HB 229 – Weapons in certain hospitals
Prohibits possession of weapons in hospitals that provide mental health or developmental services and provides that weapons seized under the bill are forfeited to the Commonwealth
Bills that are anticipated but not yet introduced:
- A recent article in The Reload reported that Judge F. Patrick Yeatts of Virginia’s Twenty-Fourth Judicial Circuit issued a permanent injunction on Oct. 19, 2025, striking down Virginia’s universal background check law in its entirety in Wilson v. Hanley. Although no bill has been introduced, it seems likely that Democrats would take this opportunity to reinstate the background check law to align with federal law that denies the sale of handguns to 18-to 20-year-olds.
- A semi-automatic and magazine-capacity ban targeting AR-15–type and other commonly owned firearms.
- Expansion of the existing red-flag law would allow more petitioners and broader disarmament, with concerns about abuse and due process.
- A statewide permit-to-purchase licensing requirement for firearm buyers which would add cost, delay, and bureaucracy as a means to reduce gun ownership
