Although violent crime rates appear to be decreasing following a pandemic-related increase, gun violence continues to plague communities across the country.
According to Gun Violence America’s statistics, approximately 500 mass shootings occurred in 2024. The bloodiest incident occurred in a Chicago suburb in January, killing eight people.
In light of the tragic school massacre in Wisconsin, President Joe Biden discussed his administration’s efforts to reduce gun violence, which included adopting the most substantial gun safety legislation in almost 30 years.
“But more is needed,” he said.
States have also taken moves to enact their own firearm regulations. Here’s what gun policy supporters had to say about the 2024 legislative year, as well as a look at several policies that will take effect in the new year.
How gun safety advocates and Second Amendment supporters reacted to 2024 measures.
According to Everytown for Gun Safety, the majority of state gun safety laws that go into effect in 2025 enforce gun safety.
“America’s gun violence epidemic is not inevitable; it is the logical outcome of lawmakers’ callous inaction in service of the gun lobby,” said Monisha Henley, senior vice president for government affairs at Everytown for Gun Safety, in a statement to USA TODAY. “As we approach the New Year, not a single significant measure reversing our gains on gun safety will take effect, but many laws making our communities safer will. As we approach 2025, one thing is clear: gun safety is not only smart policy; it is also excellent politics.
However, the National Rifle Association also touted gains in 2024. John Commerford, Interim Executive Director of the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA), announced the election of a “pro-gun president” and Republican majorities in Congress.
“Much to the dismay of gun control activists, Second Amendment rights were protected and expanded in a number of states in 2024,” Commerford told USA TODAY.
The organization cited South Carolina and Louisiana, which passed and enacted legislation in 2024 enabling legitimate gun owners to carry firearms without a permit, as well as Colorado, Maine, and New Mexico, where efforts to restrict particular types of firearms were unsuccessful.
Here are some of the legislation that will take effect on January 1 around the country.
California gun safety restrictions go into effect Jan. 1
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a slew of bills in September to tighten gun safety standards. These include requiring schools to create safety programs and strategies, as well as establishing an Office of Gun Violence Prevention, both with deadlines in the coming years.
Some of these laws take into effect on January 1, including
AB 1483 reinforces a provision that prohibits application for more than one handgun within a 30-day period. The measure eliminates an exemption for private-party transactions. However, the policy has been embroiled in legal fights, and the California Department of Justice will not implement it while a court order is in effect, the DOJ informed USA TODAY on December 27.
AB 1598 mandates firearm dealers to offer customers with a brochure outlining the benefits and dangers of owning a firearm, “including the increased risk of death to someone in the household by suicide, homicide, or unintentional injury.”
AB 2917 directs courts to broaden the criteria for a gun violence restraining order to include threats of violence, particularly hate-based threats.
“California will not wait until the next school shooting or mass shooting to act,” Gov. Gavin Newsom stated in a press statement. “In the absence of congressional action, our state is once again leading the way by strengthening our nation-leading gun laws.”
Colorado requires secure vehicle storage and training for concealed carry
Starting January 1, any firearm stored inside an unoccupied car in Colorado must be in a lockable, hard-sided container that is out of plain sight, and the vehicle must also be locked, with limited exceptions.
Later in 2025, Coloradans seeking a concealed carry permit will be required to undergo an eight-hour training course that includes a written exam and a live-fire practice. The law, which takes effect on July 1, also bars anyone convicted of certain misdemeanor offenses from acquiring a concealed carry permit if the offenses occurred within five years of the application.
New Hampshire’s New Year laws strengthen gun rights
The only gun-related legislation signed into law in New Hampshire in 2024 increased gun rights. Going into effect on January 1. HB 1186 increases privacy safeguards around gun regulations by limiting the use of specific merchant category codes, while HB 1336 prohibits companies from prohibiting employees from storing firearms in secured vehicles. SB 322, which went into effect in July, protects law enforcement personnel who grant firearms licenses “in good faith.”
After a security guard was shot and murdered while on duty at the tougher Hampshire Hospital in 2023, several lawmakers advocated for tougher gun laws. Bradley’s Law was a bipartisan law that required significant mental health information to be submitted to the federal background check system before purchasing a firearm. However, despite passing the House, the bill failed in the Senate.
Kentucky joins more than a dozen states that have enacted NRA-backed legislation.
The NRA boasted that numerous states had achieved legislation prohibiting gun stores from being assigned a “merchant category code.” Financial organizations can utilize MCCs to see what kind of purchases are made, but they do not indicate the precise item purchased.
According to the NRA, Kentucky is one of ten states that will impose an MCC ban in 2024; at least five other states have already done so, and a few more, like California, have enacted legislation requiring one.
Kentucky’s ban goes into effect January 1, 2025
New gun laws are set to take effect in Minnesota, New York, and Delaware in the new year.
Minnesota passed a binary trigger ban, which takes effect on January 1. A binary trigger allows a gun to discharge once when pulled and again when released.
Beginning January 1, Delaware will include university campuses in the Safe School Zone, making possessing a firearm on campus a criminal offense.
Beginning January 7, New York will compel gun sellers to post signs alerting consumers about the risks of gun ownership. In the new year, New York will also establish a statewide registry of extreme risk protection orders, which prohibit people from having firearms temporarily if they are deemed a threat to themselves or others.
