Skip to content

Which states require handgun sales records be sent to law enforcement?

11 states have adopted this policy

AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Alabama has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Alaska has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Arizona has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Arkansas has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

California has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Colorado has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Connecticut has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Delaware has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Florida has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Georgia has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Hawaii has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Idaho has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Illinois has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Indiana has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Iowa has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Kansas has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Kentucky has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Louisiana has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Maine has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Maryland has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Massachusetts has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Michigan has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Minnesota has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Mississippi has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Missouri has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Montana has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Nebraska has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Nevada has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

New Hampshire has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

New Jersey has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

New Mexico has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

New York has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

North Carolina has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

North Dakota has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Ohio has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Oklahoma has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Oregon has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Pennsylvania has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Rhode Island has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

South Carolina has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

South Dakota has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Tennessee has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Texas has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Utah has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Vermont has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Virginia has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Washington has adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

West Virginia has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Wisconsin has not adopted this policy

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Wyoming has not adopted this policy

What It Does

Documentation of gun sales can be used to identify the owner of weapons recovered at a crime scene and to remove illegal guns when a person becomes prohibited. While the federal system is designed to avoid central record-keeping, 11 states require handgun sales data be sent to authorities, which keep thorough records. While some policies apply only to new purchases after a certain date, others record all handguns in a resident’s possession. Most of these laws also include some or all long gun sales. A full discussion on Repealing Restrictions on Gun Trace data is here. 

The Impact

Officials in Washington State used the state’s gun sales database for millions of discrete checks each year. In California, state databases were essential for the removal of over 8,000 illegal firearms from 2017 to 2019 alone.

Sales Records Sent to Law Enforcement

Policy adopted?
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Show Citations and Footnotes 
Source: Cal. Penal Code § 11106; Cal. Penal Code § 27560; Cal. Penal Code § 28255; Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 29-33(e), 29-37a(f); Haw. Rev. Stat. § 134-3; Md. Code Ann., Pub. Safety §§ 5-124(e), 5-143; Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 140, §§ 123, 128A, 128B, 129C, 131; Mich. Comp. Laws §§ 28.422(5), (6), 28.422a(2), (3); N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2C:58-3(h); N.Y. Penal Law §§ 400.00(5), 400.02; Or. Rev. Stat. §§ 166.435(3)(c), 166.412(7); 18 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 6111; Wash. Rev. Code §§ 9.41.110(9), 9.41.129.

WA: Cornfield J. (2016, December 18). Backlog in state’s gun-database hampers tracking of sales. Seattle Times. Retrieved January 19, 2022, from https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/backlog-in-states-gun-database-hampers-tracking-of-sales/.

CA: Agents seized a total of 2,130 firearms in 2019, 2,290 firearms in 2018, and 3,685 firearms in 2017. See California Department of Justice, Armed and Prohibited Persons Systems (APPS) 2019, Annual report to the legislature, available at https://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/publications/apps-2019.pdf; California Department of Justice, APPS 2018 Annual Report to the Legislature, Armed and Prohibited Persons System, available at https://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/publications/armed-prohib-person-system-2018.pdf; APPS 2017 Annual Report to the Legislature, Armed and Prohibited PErsons System, available at https://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/publications/armed-prohib-person-system-2017.pdf.

More from Sales and permitting