At the end of July, we sent an alert warning about H.4885, a partisan anti-gun bill antithetical to the very spirit of the Second Amendment.
This bill was designed to comprehensively restructure gun laws in Massachusetts — establishing one of the most vehemently anti-liberty laws we’ve ever seen drafted and rammed into decree.
When Governor Healey signed H.4885 into law in July, there’s usually a 90-day waiting period that takes place before a bill goes into effect.
During this time, pro-gun activists started to organize an attempt to get enough signatures and put H.4885 up for a referendum in 2026.
If enough signatures were collected it would’ve suspended the legislation until the people had their say.
Pushing that chance aside, Governor Healey signed “an emergency preamble” on October 2nd which put H.4885 into effect immediately — and because it was signed as an emergency order, that referendum can no longer happen.
Governor Healey’s actions quickly rushed this bill into law and stripped Massachusetts citizens of the chance to redress the government of their grievances.
That’s why the GOA and our legal team will be fighting this legislation in courts until your Second Amendment rights have been completely restored.
As a reminder, the gun control contained in H.4885 includes, but is not limited to:
Governor Healey’s actions quickly rushed this bill into law and stripped Massachusetts citizens of the chance to redress the government of their grievances.
- A complete semi-automatic firearm and “high-capacity” magazine ban
- Tougher penalties on homemade firearms — all frames and receivers are expected to be serialized.
- Expansion of Red Flag laws.
- Stricter testing/licensing standards, which creates a new training curriculum that includes injury prevention, suicide prevention, disengagement tactics, live fire training, and completion of a written exam.
- An outright ban on “undetectable firearms.”
- Allowing the Department of Criminal Justice access to firearm owners personal data by making changes to information protection law.
- Bans the usage of 3-D printers and CNC milling machines to manufacture or assemble any firearm without a license to carry firearms.
- Bans the sale of 3-D printers and CNC milling machines that have the “primary or intended function of manufacturing or assembling firearms.”
- New permitting laws for pepper spray.
- Expansion of the current Firearm Control Advisory Board.
Among others, Governor Healey and Lt. Governor Driscoll were quoted in saying:
“Massachusetts is proud of our strong gun laws, but there is always more work to be done to keep our communities safe from violence. This legislation updates our firearms laws in response to the Supreme Court’s misguided Bruen decision.” – Governor Healey.
“Gun technology and trends are constantly evolving, and it’s important that our laws evolve along with them.” – Lt. Governor Driscoll.
If you didn’t think this was enough, House Speaker Ronald Mariano touted H.4885 as, “The culmination of a multi-year process that began after the Supreme Court’s conservative supermajority issued their disastrous Bruen decision, which weakened the Commonwealth’s gun safety laws and endangered our residents.”
These statements show the willingness of Massachusetts’ leadership to hostilely disarm law-abiding gun owners at every turn. Even when they speak of ‘safety’ or ‘evolving to meet contemporary needs,’ we all know what awaits us at the end of this anti-Second Amendment path:
Emboldened criminals, dangerous cities, and the disenfranchisement of normal citizens wishing to defend life, liberty, and property.
But we WON’T just standby and let Governor Healey dismantle the Second Amendment.
Again, that’s why GOA and our legal team are proud to say that we will be fighting this legislation in the courts.
Please continue to remain informed by browsing our alerts section for further updates.
P.S. Please distribute this alert to every pro-gun person you know. To renew your GOA membership or to join for the first time, please click here.
