North Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session

North Carolina House Bill H622 Compare Versions

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11 GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
22 SESSION 2025
3-H 1
4-HOUSE BILL 622
3+H D
4+HOUSE BILL DRH40333-ML-80
5+
56
67
78 Short Title: Limit Excessive Mag Sizes. (Public)
8-Sponsors: Representatives Clark, Harrison, Morey, and von Haefen (Primary Sponsors).
9-For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
10-Referred to: Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
11-April 2, 2025
12-*H622 -v-1*
9+Sponsors: Representative Clark.
10+Referred to:
11+
12+*DRH40333 -ML-80*
1313 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
1414 AN ACT TO LIMIT THE SIZE OF AMMUNITION MAGAZINES. 2
1515 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 3
1616 SECTION 1. Chapter 14 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article 4
1717 to read: 5
1818 "Article 53D. 6
1919 "Regulation of Large-Capacity Ammunition Magazines. 7
2020 "§ 14-409.60. Definition. 8
2121 For purposes of this Article, the term "large-capacity magazine" includes all of the following: 9
2222 (i) a fixed or detachable magazine box, drum, feed strip, or similar device capable of accepting, 10
2323 or that is designed to be readily converted to accept, more than 10 rounds of ammunition, (ii) a 11
2424 fixed or detachable magazine that is capable of accepting more than eight shotgun shells, and 12
2525 (iii) a detachable magazine, tube, box, drum, feed strip, or similar device that is capable of 13
2626 accepting more than eight shotgun shells when combined with a fixed magazine. The term does 14
2727 not include any of the following: (i) a feeding device that has been permanently altered so that it 15
2828 cannot accommodate more than 10 rounds of ammunition, (ii) an attached tubular device 16
2929 designed to accept and capable of operating only with .22 caliber rimfire ammunition, or (iii) a 17
3030 tubular magazine that is contained in a lever-action firearm. 18
3131 "§ 14-409.61. Large-capacity magazines prohibited; penalties; exceptions. 19
3232 (a) It is unlawful for a person to manufacture, sell, offer to sell, purchase, transfer, or 20
3333 possess a large-capacity magazine. A violation of this subsection is a Class 2 misdemeanor; 21
3434 provided, however, that a second or subsequent violation of this subsection is a Class 1 22
3535 misdemeanor. 23
3636 (b) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this section commits a Class I felony under 24
3737 this section if the person possessed a large-capacity magazine during the commission of a felony. 25
3838 (c) The offense described in subsection (a) of this section shall not apply to any of the 26
3939 following: 27
4040 (1) An entity, or any employee thereof engaged in the employee's employment 28
4141 duties, that manufactures large-capacity magazines within North Carolina 29
4242 exclusively for transfer or any federally licensed gun dealer, or any employee 30
4343 thereof engaged in his or her official employment duties, that sells 31
4444 large-capacity magazines exclusively to any of the following: 32
4545 a. A branch of the Armed Forces of the United States. 33
4646 b. A department, agency, or political subdivision of the State of North 34
47-Carolina, any other state, or of the United States government. 35 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
48-Page 2 House Bill 622-First Edition
47+Carolina, any other state, or of the United States government. 35
48+H.B. 622
49+Mar 31, 2025
50+HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
51+Page 2 DRH40333-ML-80
4952 c. A firearms retailer for the purpose of firearms sales conducted outside 1
5053 the State. 2
5154 d. A foreign national government that has been approved for such 3
5255 transfers by the United States government. 4
5356 e. An out-of-state transferee who may legally possess a large-capacity 5
5457 magazine. 6
5558 (2) An employee of any of the following agencies who bears a firearm in the 7
5659 course of the employee's official duties: 8
5760 a. A branch of the Armed Forces of the United States. 9
5861 b. A department, agency, or political subdivision of the State of North 10
5962 Carolina, any other state, or of the United States government. 11
6063 (3) A person who possesses the magazine for the sole purpose of transporting the 12
6164 magazine to an out-of-state entity on behalf of a manufacturer of 13
6265 large-capacity magazines within North Carolina. 14
6366 (4) A person who, on the effective date of this section, lawfully possessed a 15
6467 large-capacity magazine if, within 180 days of the effective date of this 16
6568 section, does any of the following: 17
6669 a. Permanently modifies the large-capacity magazine so that it cannot 18
6770 hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. 19
6871 b. Surrenders the large-capacity magazine to the local law enforcement 20
6972 agency in the county or municipality where the person resides or the 21
7073 State Bureau of Investigation. 22
7174 c. Transfers or sells the large-capacity magazine to a federally licensed 23
7275 gun dealer or person or firm outside of this State that is lawfully 24
7376 entitled to own or possess a large-capacity magazine." 25
7477 SECTION 2. This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to offenses 26
7578 committed on or after that date. 27