Editor's Note: Article updated April 18, 2026, with new details.
Ahead of a looming gun ban, Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger sent a bill back to legislators with suggested improvements that broaden its scope.
The bill, SB 749/HB 217, would prohibit the future sale of “assault weapons” — a category that notably includes the AR-15 — along with magazines holding more than 15-rounds
Spanberger’s office sent the bill back to the Virginia General Assembly on Monday with suggested amendments. Her office claims these suggestions offer greater clarity, but 2A advocates say the amendments go beyond the original bill’s reach.
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How the Amended Bill Defines an “Assault Firearm”
Spanberger’s amendments expand the definition of “assault weapon” using substitute language that turns the definition into a features-based test.
The new language would place any firearm with the following features into the list of banned guns:
Semi-automatic centerfire rifles with a detachable magazine, plus any one of the following features
- Folding, telescoping, or collapsible stock
- Pistol grip or thumbhole stock that protrudes beneath the action
- A second grip that can be held by the non-trigger hand
- Grenade launcher
- Threaded barrel that accepts a muzzle brake, compensator, or suppressor
Semi-automatic centerfire pistols with two of the following features:
- Folding, telescoping, or collapsible stock
- The ability to accept a magazine that attaches outside the pistol grip
- A shroud around the barrel that allows the user to hold the pistol with the non-trigger hand without getting burned
- Threaded barrel that accepts a muzzle brake, compensator, or suppressor
- A buffer tube, arm brace, or any other part that sits behind the pistol grip and allows firing from the shoulder
Semi-automatic shotguns with any of the following features:
- Folding, telescoping, or collapsible stock
- Ability to accept detachable magazines
- Magazine capacity over 15 rounds
Other categories also covered under the amendments:
- Semi-auto centerfire pistols or rifles with a capacity of 20 rounds or more, designed to pair with a silencer, or using a folding stock with a mag capacity of over 15 rounds
- Shotguns with a revolving cylinder
- Belt-fed firearms
- Any firearm modified to operate as an assault firearm under the above categories
This feature-based structure would mean most traditional hunting shotguns — fixed-stock, tube magazine — fall outside the ban, though this is a function of the definitions rather than an explicit carve-out for hunters.
The previous penalty for violating the bill was a Class 1 misdemeanor; while Spanberger’s proposal keeps that, it also suggests that anyone convicted would also be banned from purchasing, possessing, or transporting any firearm for three years.
Spanberger said the amendments were necessary to both help law enforcement and protect Virginians.
“I grew up in a family where responsible gun ownership was expected, and I carried a firearm every day as a former federal agent. I support the Second Amendment. But gun violence is the leading cause of death for children and teenagers in America, and that should motivate all of us to ask ourselves what we can do to mitigate this harm,” Spanberger said in a statement.
“This is why I’ve made amendments to provide clarity for both responsible gun owners and law enforcement, making clear what these changes mean in practice — as Virginians safely purchase and store their firearms. These commonsense steps will help keep our families, our communities, and our law enforcement officers safe.”
Pro-gun groups disagree.
“Governor Spanberger’s last-minute amendments don’t fix the bills; they merely attempt to rebrand blatant violations of law-abiding Virginians’ Second Amendment rights,” John Commerford, executive director of the NRA’s Institute for Legislation Action, said in a statement.
Lawmakers will return to Richmond on April 22 to consider the amendments, with a simple majority needed to approve.
If enacted, the ban would go into effect on July 1, 2026.
SB 749
If passed, SB 749 would outlaw the import, sale, manufacture, purchase, and transfer of assault firearms while also banning magazines holding more than 15 rounds.
The definition of an assault firearm under the bill takes aim at popular semi-auto shotguns and rifles.
Semi-auto centerfire rifles that accept a detachable magazine and also have a folding or collapsible stock, thumbhole or pistol grip, threaded barrel, or grenade launcher would fall under the definition.
Meanwhile, semi-auto shotguns with a folding, thumbhole, or pistol grip stock, as well as those that accept detachable magazines, are also included in the definition of an assault weapon.
The bill does carve out exceptions for current owners of guns and magazines that violate SB 749 so long as they are owned prior to July 1, 2026.
Co-author of the bill, Del. Dan Helmer (D-10th District), told local news that these laws would help Virginians stay safe.
“We’re going to be the first Southern state with an assault weapons ban,” Helmer said. “This is a critical opportunity to keep our communities safe from those firearms that are used in the most deadly mass shootings and from the extended high-capacity magazines that often make those shootings deadlier.”
But gun proponents argue that the bill targets lawful gun owners and will do nothing to curb gun violence.
“Instead of upholding the rights of Virginians, tyrants in Richmond have voted to gut the Constitution and turn peaceable gun owners into felons,” Firearms Policy Coalition President Brandon Combs said in a statement.
“FPC has been preparing a federal lawsuit to challenge this immoral ban on constitutionally protected firearms and magazines. We will not hesitate to sue to defend Virginians against their authoritarian government if Governor Abigail Spanberger signs this anti-gun bill into law.”
SB 727
Continuing down the list of gun legislation passed by the state, SB 727 prohibits carrying guns on public property.
The bill would outlaw the carry of all semi-auto centerfire pistols, rifles, and shotguns, as well as any gun made to operate as an “assault firearm” on public streets, roads, alleys, sidewalks, and parks. The bill goes so far as to also ban guns in any other place that is open to the public, effectively outlawing concealed carry.
HB 40
HB 40 targets 80% kits and unfinished frames and receivers, preventing the manufacture, importation, sale, transfer, or possession of “plastic firearms” and unserialized frames, receivers, and firearms.
Violators are subject to a Class 5 felony.
SB 27 & HB 21
SB 27 & HB 21 are another pair that work together to define “responsible conduct” for the gun industry operating in Virginia.
The legislation mandates that firearm industry members enact “reasonable” controls when it comes to manufacturing, selling, or marketing firearm-related products. In essence, the state wants gun makers and dealers to institute safeguards against straw purchases and firearms trafficking, suicides and homicides by guns, the marketing of guns, and auto-sear installment.
Under these bills, firearm manufacturers, distributors, and retailers in the state could be sued if they are found to violate the conduct standards.
What do you think of the legislation in Virginia? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Need to stock up on AR-15s ahead of the ban? Check out our recommendations on the Best AR-15s and Best Budget AR-15s.
Additional Resources
- SB 749
- 12OnYourSide
- FPC Statement
- SB 727
- SB 27
- HB 40
- HB 21
- Gov. Spanberger’s Amendments
- Gov. Spanberger’s Office: Statement
- Virginia Mercury
Latest Updates
April 2026: Added new information regarding Spanberger’s amendments.
32 Leave a Reply
Wish we'd get serious about dealing with our domestic enemies instead of just the foreign ones. Republicans are asleep at the wheel while democrats brazenly defy the constitution to disarm us, while simultaneously preventing law enforcement against actual criminals through open sedition and the incitement of riots. I'm convinced we'd let Xi Jinping himself on the ballot, and do nothing but post on twitter about it if he won. Honestly, Spanberger basically is that.
I believe SB 727 prohibits carrying "assault weapons," not all weapons, on public property. Currently, some localities prohibit carrying weapons with magazine capacity higher than twenty rounds in some areas. SB 727 expands that prohibition state-wide while dropping the magazine capacity to fifteen rounds. In addition, "assault weapons" in general cannot be carried. This designation makes AR-like weapons, braced pistols, and the like unable to be carried on public property unless going hunting or to a shooting range. It does not, in my reading, prohibit us from carrying a Glock 19, for example, or a shotgun. Note--I'm not a lawyer and I'm not giving legal advice.
To all the “keep politics off this site” people, I say this with the utmost love and respect: firearms and politics are intertwined, whether you like it or not.
If firearms enthusiasts ignore politics, pretty soon we won’t have any firearms to be enthusiastic about.
If you are from Virginia, stay out of my state. You elect un-Americans. Spanberger not only hates the 2A, but gutted Social Security by repealing WEP and GPO so non-FICA payers can double dip pensions. The pattern is she smiles and screws America. Is she blowing all you people? Spanberger has been reported to 800callspy for un-American activities. Make the call
So you would rather their readers be left in the dark?
ahh a fake news enjoyer!
Thanks for your opinion
Elect democrats, loose your individual rights for the "betterment" of everyone else. Super simple stuff. Can't believe this is a surprise to anyone.
Remember that there is a provision for hunting in there that allows you to carry your weapons to and from that activity and coyote season is year round. Hope that helps.
We are under no obligation to follow unconstitutional laws. Several of the laws are unconstitutional. "Shall not be infringed" is pretty clear.
People need to wake up to the fact that our 2A rights are what protect all our other rights and if you let them take that one, the rest usually follow suit shortly.
Vote accordingly next time, email and call your representatives, hold them accountable for screwing you over. Don't be lazy, make a fuss.
VA. legislation becomes law even if the Governor doesn't sign it!
Regardless of your opinion. I for one don’t want to see your political opinions on here. This is about pew pews and pew pew related stuff. I could care less about your political beliefs and opinions. Have a nice day
Hey Scott, we frequently report on news that impacts the gun industry and gun owners. That said, our reporting is apolitical and focused on getting information to gun owners. Thanks for reading!
I wish the Supreme Court WOULD overturn it. But I suspect that the actual ban itself will be upheld. Why? Because to overturn it, the Supreme Court would have to overturn its own precedent on the subject of state-level bans. Specifically, both Miller and Heller - while generally reaffirming individual rights to own guns - also allowed states to set limitations on such ownership.
The Bruen decision COULD potentially change that. But the SC would have to tie itself into legal and philosophical knots to do so. (The good news, I guess? This current SC has shown no hesitation to tie itself into legal and philosophical knots to achieve its desired outcomes.)
“Democrats will lie, cheat and steal to get into office/power.”
You mean like, Democrats will lose an election and then the vast majority of them will falsely claim the election was “stolen”* in an incredibly cynical, dishonest, and shameless attempt to retain office/power? Is that the type of behavior you’re talking about? Oh, wait a minute…
There’s an old phrase that seems relevant here: “Remember, when you point your finger, there are always three fingers pointing right back at you.”
And no, it isn’t true that “all democrats are Marxist”. If you TRULY believe otherwise I’d strongly suggest you’d benefit from spending less time on the Internet and more time in the real world talking to real people.
*I’m not even going to debate that Trump did - in point of objective fact - lose the 2020 election. Anyone arguing otherwise in 2026 already lost that argument years ago; even if they don’t want to admit it. There’s a very good reason you no longer hear GOP politicians and media outlets banging that drum, and a very good reason the POTUS never created - and never will create - a “Presidential Commission to Study the 2020 Stolen Election” (like he did in 2017 after he WON the 2016 election).
A reasonable person would think that if POTUS, GOP politicians, and right-leaning media GENUINELY and SINCERELY believed their own lie, they’d still be pounding their desks daily demanding justice be done and that the government spare no resources to get to the bottom of the alleged heist! But quite noticeably (and frankly suspiciously), these days they don’t REALLY want to touch that subject with a 10-foot pole. Why?
Because they already well-know that their lie was in fact a lie, so now the LAST thing they want is to remind the voting public of how low they were willing to swoop in 2020 to retain power. Any “investigation” would only confirm what we already know, and what 32 Republican Secretaries of State already confirmed under oath: Trump lost. And his fragile ego simply cannot accept that. So, he’ll keep CLAIMING the election was stolen…but suspiciously won’t actually do anything to back it up.
And one more time…we already know why. At least, IF people are willing to be honest with themselves. Unfortunately, I’m well aware that most people greatly prefer comfortable lies over uncomfortable truths. And will often bend themselves into ridiculousness mental knots simply to avoid acknowledging that uncomfortable truth.
Keep all this in mind the next time you declare how dishonest and conniving the OTHER guys are. Because I’m really, really tired of partisans acting like the OTHER team’s poop smells rotten, while their OWN TEAM’S poop smells like nothing other than a lilac bouquet. Sorry, but that simply isn’t how reality works. And denying reality for too long pretty much always eventually backfires.
Yes, on the extreme end there are Democrats who act and believe exactly as you said. There are also Democrats - and more than a few - who generally do NOT support gun control. AI tells me it’s about 38% of all registered Democrats.
I mention this only because I dislike it when people ascribe a particular thought or viewpoint to an ENTIRE party, as if that party is a monolith where everyone within it believes exactly the same thing on all matters.
I blame dumbed-down online discourse and echo chambers for this trend. Because when you read about this type of stuff online it’s always black & white: “Dems (like, all of them) believe in ABC, while Republicans (like, all of them) believe in XYZ.” In real life however, study after study shows us that MOST people are not hardcore “left” or “right”. Most people are a lot more moderate in their beliefs and opinions than online chatter would have you believe.
The point? I don’t think that painting with such a broad brush and saying EVERY Democrat is either a socialist, communist, or facist is helpful for us. Because aside from it simply being factually incorrect, it risks making US look like extremists! And I don’t think that’s helpful for enlisting the support of the 38% of Democrats who actually agree with us on gun issues.
I mean, think about this in reverse. If any Democrat started an argument by claiming that ALL Republicans or conservatives are fascists and narcissists, are YOU going to take that person seriously with anything else they might have to say? Even if some of their other thoughts are valid? Probably not, I’d guess.
To win this macro argument on gun control, it would help if we stopped shooting ourselves in the feet in the process by throwing out exaggerated claims about our opponents. Winning arguments ultimately comes down to credibility. And since with gun control the facts are clearly on our side, why would we want to slice at our own credibility in the process of advancing those facts? How does that help us?
Throughout the years I’ve actually convinced (successfully) close to a half-dozen Democrats that their views on gun control were incorrect. I was never successful with that by starting the conversation with, “Why are you such a socialist / communist / fascist?”
Dems are a blend of socialism, communism, neofascism, and narcissism. Show me one Communist or Socialist country that has anything close to a second amendment or allows citizens to have firearms that are suitable for removing tyrant dictators. Show me one fascist country that has or had the same. You can't because there weren't any and aren't any today. Communists, socialists, and fascits seek to ensure that nobody but the state has guns. That way the populace can't stage an armed revolution when they realize the dumpster fire that is communism, socialism, or fascism tyrant dictatorship under which they live. Mao Zedong said "political power grows out of the barrel of a gun". Marx himself only wished the populace to be armed in order to overthrow the rulers and establish his communist dystopian wet dream. Afterwards, he had squarely planned to take those arms away in order to control the very people that just overthrew the government. And that's exactly what happened in Russia circa October 1917.
Democrats are not Marxists. They are part of the neoliberal ruling class. Karl Marx specifically stated: "Under no pretext should arms and ammunition be surrendered; any attempt to disarm the workers must be frustrated, by force if necessary."
Please read about what you are labeling people as. These democrats will gladly take guns away from people because it subdues the population.
Commies support 2A. "Under no pretext should arms and ammunition be surrendered; any attempt to disarm the workers must be frustrated, by force if necessary."
After 47 years here - in the USN, then repairing and building U S Navy ships and submarines - I am going home to Florida. Sayonara, Virginiastan. It was a good run.
Look at POTUS, he is a Republican and he has lied cheated and broke a lot of laws including against starting wars but he is OK ???!
Literally whataboutism. Maybe try sticking to the subject at hand? I’m looking forward to these being overturned by Scotus.
These politicians are knowingly stealing the rights of the people and should be considered criminals as a result (and traitors to liberty and the constitution). Put them in jail, or at a minimum begin to enforce major penalties against them personally. Aggravated Infringement.
Less politics, more gun reviews? These are hardly the worst gun laws in the US.
Hey Bob, we frequently report on news that impacts gun owners; but I promise, we are still apolitical. No political leanings, just news on what's happening and how it impacts gun owners. (We still have plenty of reviews and other articles if these type aren't your preference!) Thanks for taking the time to read and comment.
Luckily for Virginians, the dangerous predatory/mentally ill/criminal class will adhere to all gun control laws. Thank goodness for foreign born Marxists to deliver Virginia to utopian safety.
Pretty much banned effective defensive firearms against a pack of thugs attempting to rob you or worse. How many Home Invasions/car jackings do they already have each year? Good luck to anyone confronting an intruder at 2 in the morning, and having to deal with the upcoming legal battle after you defended your family... Daniel Penny or Kyle Rittenhouse ring any bells?
1st off elections have consequences. Secondly democrats will lie, cheat and steal to get into office/power. All democrats are Marxists these days that only want to control the citizens and destroy the country.
From what I've read the two Virginia assembly members that wrote the bill were both born in Bangladesh (IMO don't give two bits about the 'Bill of Rights' and fit right in with a particular political party).
Look on the bright side: fewer criminals in your state because most of them are moving to Virginia
Attention people of Virginia..
You get the government you deserve!.. that large number of federal workers has totally ruined your your government... but of course, Virginia was always very liberal.. when I was in the Navy in 92 it was...
Dear outsider,
No, Virginia is NOT “very liberal”. It’s a sea of red counties that surround some densely populated area of northerners that fled their states after they voted for policies that ruined them. And now they are here ruining VA, please don't conflate them with Virginians.
Seems like an open invitation to criminals to me. So sad to see my state go so wrong.
As if commiefornia wasnt enought...