CA DOJ Withdraws Proposed “Assault Weapon” Definitions Regulations

Less than two months ago, the California Department of Justice, Bureau of Firearms (“CA DOJ”) formally submitted a proposed regulation expanding the application of its improperly adopted “assault weapon” definitions to apply in all circumstances. The Office of Administrative Law (“OAL”) was scheduled to decide whether to approve the regulation yesterday. Following opposition submitted by the CRPA & NRA legal team, CA DOJ officially withdrew its proposed regulation the day before OAL was scheduled to make its decision.

This isn’t the first time CA DOJ has withdrawn a proposed regulation. It was previously forced to withdraw its illegal “assault weapon” registration regulations following NRA and CRPA’s joint-opposition, regulations which were later officially rejected by OAL. Those regulations are now the subject of a lawsuit titled Villanueva v. Becerra, which challenges the regulations as a violation of California’s Administrative Procedures Act and will soon be briefed before the California Court of Appeal.

This latest withdrawal of a proposed regulation expanding the application of DOJ’s illegally adopted regulations is welcome news for all California gun owners. At the very least, the withdraw shows CA DOJ does not get a free pass to adopt regulations outside the scope of its authority.

To stay up-to-date on this and other important Second amendment issues here in California, including the Villanueva v. Becerra lawsuit, be sure to subscribe to NRA and CRPA email alerts. And be sure to visit the NRA-ILA California dedicated webpage at www.StandAndFightcalifornia.com and the newly redesigned CRPA webpage at www.CRPA.org.

And don’t forget to register to vote and visit CRPA’s webpage to learn more about volunteer opportunities in your area to help protect and promote the Second Amendment in California. Visit www.crpa.org/crpa-events/volunteer/ for more information.