Which states prohibit guns in bars?
14 states have adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Alabama has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Alaska has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Arizona has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Arkansas has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
California has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Colorado has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Connecticut has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Delaware has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Florida has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Georgia has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Hawaii has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Idaho has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Illinois has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Indiana has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Iowa has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Kansas has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Kentucky has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Louisiana has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Maine has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Maryland has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Massachusetts has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Michigan has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Minnesota has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Mississippi has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Missouri has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Montana has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Nebraska has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Nevada has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
New Hampshire has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
New Jersey has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
New Mexico has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
New York has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
North Carolina has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
North Dakota has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Ohio has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Oklahoma has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Oregon has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Pennsylvania has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Rhode Island has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
South Carolina has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
South Dakota has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Tennessee has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Texas has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Utah has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Vermont has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Virginia has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Washington has adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
West Virginia has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Wisconsin has not adopted this policy
No Guns in Bars
Wyoming has not adopted this policy
What It Does
Despite strong evidence that guns and alcohol don’t mix,1Ellicott C. Matthay et al., “Assessing Links Between Alcohol Exposure and Firearm Violence: A Scoping Review Update,” Alcohol Research 45, no. 1 (2025): https://doi.org/10.35946/arcr.v45.1.01. only a minority of states have acted to prohibit the carrying of guns in bars—with even fewer states rejecting guns in all places that serve alcohol. A full discussion on Guns in Bars is here.
The Impact
Alcohol use increases the likelihood of violent behavior and leads to impaired judgment.1Ingrid M. Wilson, Kathryn Graham, and Angela Taft, “Alcohol Interventions, Alcohol Policy, And Intimate Partner Violence: A Systematic Review,” BMC Public Health 14 (2014): 881, https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-14-881; Charles Casey “Guns, Binge Drinking Go Hand-In-Hand,” Futurity, June 17, 2011, https://web.archive.org/web/20130901034230/http://futurity.org/guns-binge-drinking-go-hand-in-hand/. Nearly half of all homicide perpetrators report being under the influence of alcohol at the time of their crime.2Shane Drake, “The Toxicology of Homicide Offenders and Victims: A Review,” Drug and Alcohol Review 29, no. 2 (2010): 202–25, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1465-3362.2009.00099.x; Jennifer C. Karberg and Doris J. James, “Substance Dependence, Abuse, and Treatment of Jail Inmates, 2002,” Bureau of Justice Statistics, July 2005, https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/sdatji02.pdf. Alcohol use has also been linked to being the victim of gun homicide3Ellicott C. Matthay et al., “Assessing Links Between Alcohol Exposure and Firearm Violence: A Scoping Review Update,” Alcohol Research 45, no. 1 (2025): https://doi.org/10.35946/arcr.v45.1.01; Charles C. Branas, SeungHoon Han, and Douglas J. Wiebe, “Alcohol Use and Firearm Violence,” Epidemiologic Reviews 38, no. 1 (2016): 32–45, https://doi.org/10.1093/epirev/mxv010. and gun suicide.4 Kawon V. Kim et al., “Relationship Between Alcohol Use and Firearm-Involved Suicide: Findings From the National Violent Death Reporting System, 2003–2020,” American Journal of Preventive Medicine 66, no. 5 (2024): 832–39, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2023.11.019; Charles C. Branas, SeungHoon Han, and Douglas J. Wiebe, “Alcohol Use and Firearm Violence,” Epidemiologic Reviews 38, no. 1 (2016): 32–45, https://doi.org/10.1093/epirev/mxv010.
No Guns in Bars
Show Citations and Footnotes
Source: Alaska Stat. § 11.61.220(a)(2); Cal. Penal Code §§ 26200, 26230(a)(9); H.R.S. § 134-A(a)(4); 720 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/24-1(a)(8), 430 Ill. Comp. Stat. §§ 66/65(a)(9), 66/10(c)(1); Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 244.125(1); La. Rev. Stat. § 14:95.5; 2022 NJ A 4769, sec. 7(15); Md. Criminal Law § 4-111(a)(8), (e); N.M. Stat. Ann. § 30-7-3(A); N.D. Cent. Code § 62.1-02-04; Okla. Stat. tit. 21, § 1272.1; Tex. Penal Code §§ 46.03(a)(7), 46.035(b)(1); Wash. Rev. Code § 9.41.300(1). As of September 2025, the Attorney General has stated that the location restrictions set forth in Fla. Stat. § 790.06(12)(a) apply to the concealed and open carry of all firearms.