(The Center Square) — New York has become the latest state to restrict so-called ‘ghost guns’ that can be assembled using parts manufactured on 3D printers, drawing threats of legal action from 2nd Amendment groups.
The restrictions were signed into law late Wednesday by Gov. Kathy Hochul as part of the $268 billion state budget, which comes more than a month late. The bill sets criminal penalties for the manufacture of 3D-printed firearms and requires minimum safety standards for 3D printer manufacturers to “block the production” of firearms and gun components.
It will also require gunmakers to design pistols so they can’t be modified into “machine guns” and require local police and sheriffs’ offices to report recoveries of 3D printed guns.
Hochul said as firearm technology continues to evolve, the new regulations would help the state uphold its “strongest-in-the-nation” gun control laws and continue its progress reducing gun violence.
But the National Rifle Association called the new restrictions “unconstitutional” and criticized Hochul and Democratic lawmakers for pushing the bill through as part of the state’s must-pass budget.
“This was a strategic and calculated procedural move to put divisive legislation into an all-or-nothing budget bill,” the NRA said. “Despite having a trifecta of control, Majority Democrats needed over a dozen extenders after missing their April 1 budget deadline.”
The NRA called the restrictions a “brazen ban” on an entire class of firearms and 3D printing devices, pointing to vague language in the bill banning “convertible pistols.”
“This move creates a ban on an entire class of commonly-owned handguns, any gun with a “cruciform trigger bar,” the group said. “These guns are banned whether or not a conversion device is actually installed or even possessed.”
Unlike commercially manufactured serialized firearms, “ghost” guns can be assembled from parts manufactured on milling machines and 3D printers. The weapons circumvent background checks, convicted felon restrictions and waiting periods because they are sold as components rather than a completed gun, authorities say.
A 3D-printed ghost gun was allegedly used by Luigi Mangione to kill United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a brazen shooting in downtown Manhattan more than a year ago.
Hochul signed a bill in 2021 that banned untraceable “ghost guns” in New York by criminalizing their sale, requiring serialization, and closing “loopholes” that allowed parts to be bought and assembled without background checks.
But critics say the measure failed to criminalize the manufacturing of firearm components using 3-D printers, which has allowed their proliferation despite tougher rules.
The new restrictions are likely to be challenged in court, even as the state fights lawsuits over other firearm restrictions. The U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark 2022 decision in the N.Y. State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen case struck down a New York law requiring applicants to show “proper cause” to get a permit to carry a firearm.
“Obviously, this bill raises a whole host of constitutional questions,” the NRA said. “New York State is no stranger to being sued over its unconstitutional gun laws, but Majority Democrats seemed unmoved by these arguments.
