Assembly Bill 458 did not pass in the 2025-26 session. Its latest text would have required the Department of General Services, in consultation with DOJ, to develop model guidelines by July 1, 2027 for state procurement of firearms, ammunition, and firearm accessories from vendors complying with applicable firearms laws.
Legislation
Who: Firearm and ammunition manufacturers, firearm accessory companies, government procurement officers, public entities with firearms contracts●Reviewed Oct 15, 2026
Senate Bill 948, Chapter 465, Statutes of 2026, was approved on September 26, 2026 and takes effect January 1, 2027. It extends the personal firearm importer compliance period from 60 to 180 days and requires an FSC within 180 days for importers required to report the firearm, subject to statutory exceptions. Importer-report certification begins January 1, 2028. For FSC applications on or after January 1, 2029, it adds a course of at least four hours, including live-fire exercises, with an exception for valid CCW permit holders and individuals who completed an initial or renewal CCW course within the previous three years.
Legislation
Who: All persons purchasing or acquiring firearms in California, personal firearm importers, and DOJ-certified instructors who administer FSC testing and training●Reviewed Oct 17, 2026
AB 1743 was enacted as Chapter 457, Statutes of 2026, effective January 1, 2027. It clarifies access to DOJ firearm-analysis information for California government agencies, CSU, UC, and qualifying nonprofit private postsecondary institutions under Attorney General conditions and format options.
Legislation
Who: California DOJ Bureau of Firearms, local government agencies, state agencies, UC and CSU researchers, researchers at qualifying private postsecondary institutions, policy analysts●Reviewed Oct 15, 2026
AB 1615 was enacted as Chapter 198, Statutes of 2026, effective January 1, 2027. It allows county probation officers to meet the service-weapon training requirement through the POST firearms course and requires live-fire qualification at least every three months.
Legislation
Who: County probation departments, their peace officers who use handguns not on the roster as service weapons, and the California DOJ●Reviewed Oct 17, 2026
Assembly Bill 1589 did not pass in the 2025-26 session. It proposed an on-duty silencer exception for specified Level I reserve peace officers using an agency-owned silencer affixed to an agency-owned rifle with agency authorization.
Legislation
Who: Level I reserve peace officers, law enforcement agencies that employ reserve officers, California DOJ Bureau of Firearms●Reviewed Oct 16, 2026
Assembly Bill 1344, Chapter 573, Statutes of 2025, allows Alameda, El Dorado, Santa Clara, and Ventura counties to establish pilot programs authorizing district attorneys to petition for Gun Violence Restraining Orders (GVROs) under the existing framework.
Legislation
Who: District attorneys in Alameda, El Dorado, Santa Clara, and Ventura counties, individuals who may be subject to DA-initiated GVRO petitions, law enforcement in pilot counties, firearms owners in those jurisdictions●Reviewed Oct 16, 2026
Assembly Bill 584, Chapter 40, Statutes of 2025, took effect January 1, 2026. It adds an allowed steel security-door option using panic hardware and a multipoint lock to the secure-facility definitions for firearms dealers and manufacturers.
Legislation
Who: Licensed firearms dealers (FFLs), firearm manufacturers operating in California, Certificate of Eligibility (COE) holders●Reviewed Oct 15, 2026
Assembly Bill 383, now Chapter 362 of the Statutes of 2025, strengthens enforcement of California's existing prohibition on minors possessing firearms by extending firearm relinquishment procedures to juveniles adjudicated as wards, granting search warrant authority for non-compliance, and extending the existing infraction penalty for failure to file relinquishment forms.
Legislation
Who: Juveniles adjudicated as wards who are prohibited from possessing firearms until age 30, parents and guardians of such minors, law enforcement agencies, juvenile courts●Reviewed Oct 15, 2026
AB 1722 proposed defenses against penalties for taking listed species when necessary and reasonable force protected a person from immediate bodily harm. The Governor vetoed the bill on September 18, 2026.
Legislation
Who: Anyone who uses force to protect themselves, family members, or others from immediate bodily harm from a species listed under the California Endangered Species Act●Reviewed Oct 15, 2026
On January 2, 2026, a Ninth Circuit panel struck down California's ban on open carry in counties with populations exceeding 200,000. The Ninth Circuit vacated the panel opinion, granted rehearing en banc, and heard argument in early June 2026. A decision is pending, and all open carry laws remain enforceable.
Court Decisions
Who: All California residents in counties with populations exceeding 200,000; law enforcement agencies statewideAction: Do not openly carry firearms at this time. The panel opinion was vacated when the Ninth Circuit granted rehearing en banc on April 15, 2026, and the en banc court heard argument on June 3, 2026. Keep complying with the ban.●Reviewed Oct 16, 2026
Duncan v. Bonta is the lead challenge to California's ban on large-capacity magazines (more than 10 rounds). After the Ninth Circuit en banc court upheld the ban in March 2025, plaintiffs sought Supreme Court review. The petition has not been denied and appears to be held pending Grant v. Higgins and Viramontes v. Cook County, consolidated cases to be argued in the October Term 2026. The acquisition and transfer restrictions remain in effect, while the ban on possessing magazines acquired when acquiring them was lawful has never taken effect.
Court Decisions
Who: All firearms owners in California who own or wish to purchase magazines holding more than 10 rounds●Reviewed Oct 17, 2026
AB 879 did not pass in the 2025-26 session. It proposed changes to Unsafe Handgun Act exemptions and related storage and reporting rules. Its last recorded action was August 29, 2025, when Senate Appropriations held it under submission.
Legislation
Who: County probation departments and their peace officers who would use handguns not on the roster as service weapons●Reviewed Oct 15, 2026