Virginia Democrats Unveil Another Round of Gun Control Bills

Today is the first day of the 2026 legislative session in Virginia, and the Democrats now in complete control of state government have dropped another round of anti-gun legislation aimed at lawful gun owners… with more on the way before the January 23 deadline to file bills. 

HB 700 “[p]rovides that no person shall sell a firearm unless at least five days have elapsed from the time the prospective purchaser completes the written consent form to have a licensed dealer obtain criminal history record information.”  The way I read the bill, even if a NICS check is approved within a matter of minutes, a buyer would have to wait until those five days have elapsed. 

HB 702 creates something called the “Virginia Firearm Give-Back Program and Fund,” which would require the Virginia State Police’s regional division headquarters to “serve as a drop-off point for individuals to voluntarily give back firearms, which must be subsequently destroyed by the Department.” As of right now local law enforcement agencies aren’t required to participate in the program, but that could always be amended as the bill moves forward. 

Virginia Republicans have also introduced a couple of pro-2A measures that, sadly, won’t go far this session. 

 HB691, introduced by Republican Del. Eric Zehr, would repeal the statute that allows localities to create “gun-free zones” in public parks and public streets, sidewalks, and “any other place of whatever nature that is open to the public and is being used by or is adjacent to a permitted event or an event that would otherwise require a permit.”

HB 692, also authored by Zehr, would lower the maximum fee that a local law enforcement agency can charge for conducting a background check on concealed carry applicants from $35 to $10, and reduces the total cost of processing a concealed carry permit application from $50 to $25. 

In addition to the most recent gun control bills, Virginia Democrats have already introduced a bill banning the sale, manufacture, and transfer of so-called assault firearms and large capacity magazines that also prohibits possession of “assault firearms” by adults under the age of 21. Other gun control bills would make it easier to sue members of the firearms industry for the actions of criminals, require guns to be locked up at all times unless they’re under the direct control of the gun owner, and criminalizes the possession of unserialized firearms and unfinished frames and receivers. 

The deadline to introduce new bills is still more than a week away, and it’s likely that even more bad bills will see the light of day after Virginia gun owners rally at the state capitol on January 19 for the Virginia Citizens Defense League’s annual Lobby Day. We have yet to see the Senate’s version of an “assault firearm” ban, for example, and a permit-to-purchase measure that’s been discussed by Democrats is also still under wraps for now. 

Democrats have a supermajority in the House of Delegates, which guarantees that any gun control legislation that’s a priority for leadership will be approved by the lower chamber. Democrats only have a two seat majority in the state Senate, so theoretically it will be tougher for anti-gun legislation to pass there. Unfortunately, Senate Democrats have largely been united in their hostility towards the Second Amendment in recent sessions, and have previously approved dozens of anti-gun bills including bans on “assault firearms” and magazines that can hold more than ten rounds. 

I’ve seen several comments from Democrat gun owners on Reddit’s /liberalgunowners community who are hoping to convince Democrats to back off their push for gun control, and while I wish them luck I don’t think they’re going to have much success. The gun control lobby is salivating over the opportunity to overhaul Virginia’s gun laws and turn the state into another Maryland or New Jersey, at least where our Second Amendment rights are concerned, and I suspect they’ll have no shortage of Democrat lawmakers who are eager to go along.  

Editor’s Note: The radical left will stop at nothing to enact their radical gun control agenda and strip us of our Second Amendment rights.

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