What’s inside the new proposed Massachusetts gun bill, HD.4607?

CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) – After an extensive gun bill, HD.4420, failed to receive approval in the House several months ago, a new bill on gun restrictions in the state has appeared.

The new bill, HD.4607, is an update to the former bill that is sponsored by Representative Michael Day and has been called a “significantly different” bill than the original. The new bill was filed Wednesday night, following the shooting in Holyoke where an infant died.

This updated bill aims to target ghost guns by enforcing the serialization of firearm parts. This would tighten restrictions on ghost guns, and ensure that the manufacturers of these kits, mark these guns with serial numbers so they are no longer untraceable.

Also in the bill is a modification to the state’s assault weapon ban. The term “assault weapon” would be changed to “assault-style firearm.” This new term has been defined in the bill as the following:

• A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle with the capacity to accept a detachable feeding device and includes any of the following: a folding stock, pistol grip, forward grip, a threaded barrel design to suppress flash, a shroud that encircles the barrel to shield the bearer’s hand from heat.
• A semiautomatic pistol with the capacity to accept a detachable feeding device and includes any of the following: any feeding device that grips outside the pistol grip, a second handgrip held by the non-trigger hand, a flash suppressor, a shroud that encircles the barrel to shield the bearer’s hand from heat.
• A semiautomatic shotgun with the capacity to accept a detachable feeding device and includes any of the following: a folding stock, a pistol grip, a protruding grip for the non-trigger hand.
• Any firearm listed on the assault-style firearm roster pursuant to section 128A.
• All AK-style rifles and pistols
• All AR-style rifles and pistols, including the AR-10 and AR-15
• Dozens of other rifle and pistol-type weapons, including the Barrett M107A1, Springfield Armory SAR-48, all Thompson rifles, all UZI types, and the MAC-10. The full list can be found in the bill.
• Any shotgun with a revolving cylinder
• All belt-fed semiautomatic firearms
• Any copy or duplicate of any firearm

The term does not include any manual bolt, pump, lever or slide action rifle, any firearm rendered permanently inoperable, any antique or theatrical rifle, or a semiautomatic shotgun that cannot hold more than five rounds of ammunition in a feeding device.

Anyone currently in possession of these firearms would still be able to possess them if the bill were to become law, so long as they were lawfully possessed within the Commonwealth by August 1, 2024.

The bill also looks to limit the presence of a firearm in certain public areas and will also add steps for those seeking a license to carry by requiring live firearm training.

The House will host a public hearing next Tuesday, with a vote likely to follow later in the month.