The new regulations limit handgun purchases, create a red flag law and instill universal background checks, among other restrictions.
1. Virginians are only allowed one handgun purchase a month.
This is not a new law, but a reinstatement of an old ordinance, which ran 1993 to 2012. The aim is to disallow the stockpiling of pistols and dissuade gun trafficking, according to a press release.
2. Gun owners are subject to a red flag law.
The Extreme Risk Protective Order allows the state to “temporarily separate a person from their firearms when they represent a danger to themselves or others” before seeing a judge in court, according to the press release.
3. Background checks are mandated on all firearm sales and transfers (also known as universal background checks).
All firearm sellers, including private transactions at gun shows, must run background checks, the release said.
4. Gun owners have 48 hours to report a lost or stolen firearm.
Gun owners whose firearms were misplaced or stolen can face civil penalties if they don’t report the matter to authorities within two days, the release said.
5. Guns in households with children must be securely stored.
Gun owners will face a harsher penalty if they “recklessly” keep firearms in a home with children under the age of 14, according to the press release. The offense was increased to a class 1 misdemeanor, which carries jail time as a possible penalty.
The law previously was a class 3 misdemeanor with a $500 fine.
6. One piece of signed legislation banned “trigger activators.”
Northam’s law bans “trigger activators,” which enable “more than one shot with the pull of the trigger,” according to the legislation.
Binary triggers fire a single projectile when the trigger is pulled in addition to another round when a shooter releases their finger from the trigger. These have been legal to own as they simulate automatic fire and don’t make a semi-automatic firearm fully automatic, according to Gun Mag Warehouse.
The Gun Owners of America, a pro-Second Amendment group said “The new law DOES NOT prohibit binary triggers,” according to a statement on their webpage.
7. Child care facilities must lock down firearms.
Family day homes, care facilities for children that aren’t blood related, must lock and secure all firearms during daily operations, according to Virginia legal text.
8. Some gun safes are exempt from sales tax.
Gun safes bought for a price less than $1,500 will not incur sales tax, one bill specified.
9. Those under the scrutiny of protective orders are required to promptly surrender their firearms.
Gun owners served with protective orders must turn their weapons over to the state within 24 hours of receiving the notice, another bill detailed. Protective orders refer to those who the state deems to be unfit to possess firearms or a concealed weapons permit.
10. Cities and counties have leeway in regulating firearms.
Different localities can impose their own regulations on where firearms can be carried. Public parks, event spaces, government buildings, and others locations are places that are fair game for banning carry, according to the Daily Press.
