Which states prohibit high-capacity magazines?
14 states have adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Alabama has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Alaska has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Arizona has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Arkansas has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
California has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Colorado has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Connecticut has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Delaware has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Florida has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Georgia has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Hawaii has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Idaho has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Illinois has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Indiana has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Iowa has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Kansas has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Kentucky has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Louisiana has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Maine has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Maryland has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Massachusetts has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Michigan has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Minnesota has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Mississippi has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Missouri has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Montana has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Nebraska has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Nevada has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
New Hampshire has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
New Jersey has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
New Mexico has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
New York has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
North Carolina has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
North Dakota has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Ohio has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Oklahoma has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Oregon has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Pennsylvania has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Rhode Island has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
South Carolina has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
South Dakota has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Tennessee has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Texas has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Utah has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Vermont has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Virginia has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Washington has adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
West Virginia has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Wisconsin has not adopted this policy
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Wyoming has not adopted this policy
What It Does
These laws prohibit the purchase of high-capacity magazines, which are ammunition-feeding devices designed for lethality—enabling a shooter to fire more rounds without pausing to reload. States have typically defined high-capacity to include magazines that hold more than 10 rounds, though a few states provide different thresholds. A full discussion on High Capacity Magazines is here.
The Impact
From 2009 to 2022, the 10 mass shooting incidents with the most casualties all involved the use of at least one firearm equipped with a high-capacity magazine. Research shows that states with restrictions on magazine size experience mass shootings at less than half the rate of states without restrictions.
High Capacity Magazines Prohibited
Show Citations and Footnotes
Source: Cal. Penal Code §§ 32310, 16350, 16740; C.R.S. § 18-12-302(1); Conn. Gen. Stat. § 53-202w(a)-(c); Del. Code Ann. tit. 11, §§ 1465, 1466; Haw. Rev. Stat. § 134-8(c); Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law § 4-305(b); Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, §§ 131M, 121; N.J. Stat. Ann. §§ 2C:39-3(j), 2C:39-1(y); N.Y. Penal Law §§ 265.10(1)-(3), (6), 265.36, 265.00(23); R.I. Gen. Laws. §§ 11-47.1-2, 11-47.1-3; 13 V.S.A. § 4021(a); 2021 WA S 5078 (to be codified); D.C. Code § 7-2506.01(b)). Top 10: Las Vegas, NV, 471 people shot, 60 fatally; Orlando, FL, 102 people shot, 49 fatally; Aurora, CO, 70 people shot, 12 fatally; Highland Park, IL, 53 shot, 7 fatally; El Paso, TX, 46 people shot, 23 fatally; Fort Hood, TX, 45 people shot, 13 fatally; Sutherland Springs, TX, 45 people shot, 25 fatally; Uvalde, TX, 38 people shot, 21 fatally; San Bernardino, CA, 36 people shot, 14 fatally; and Parkland, FL, 34 people shot, 17 fatally. Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, “Mass Shootings in America,” accessed January 5, 2023, https://everytownresearch.org/maps/mass-shootings-in-america/. <1/2: Louis Klarevas, Andrew Conner, and David Hemenway, “The Effect of Large-Capacity Magazine Bans on High-Fatality Mass Shootings, 1990–2017,” American Journal of Public Health 109, no. 12 (2019): 1754-61, https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2019.305311. Study defined mass shooting as six or more shot and killed, excluding the shooter; Sam Petulla, “Here Is 1 Correlation between State Gun Laws and Mass Shootings,” CNN, October 5, 2017, https://cnn.it/2J4sWCC. Study defines mass shootings as incidents where three or more victims, not including the shooter, are shot and killed or shot and wounded.