Pennsylvania has no assault weapons ban. Semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns — including AR-15-platform firearms and standard-capacity magazines — remain legal to buy, own, and possess anywhere in the Commonwealth, provided you pass a background check and are not otherwise prohibited from having firearms. Bills proposing a ban have been introduced in the General Assembly across multiple sessions, but none has advanced beyond committee.
What Is Legal in Pennsylvania Right Now
No Pennsylvania statute restricts semi-automatic firearms based on cosmetic features, magazine capacity, or platform type. An AR-15, an AK-style rifle, or any other modern semi-automatic firearm can be legally purchased by any eligible Pennsylvania resident. Eleven states and the District of Columbia have enacted assault weapons bans. Pennsylvania is not among them.
Cities and counties cannot fill the gap on their own. Under 18 Pa. C.S. § 6120, no county, municipality, or township may regulate the lawful ownership, possession, transfer, or transportation of firearms or ammunition.1Pennsylvania General Assembly. Pennsylvania Code 18 6120 – Limitation on the Regulation of Firearms and Ammunition That preemption applies to all sixty-seven counties, including Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Courts have repeatedly struck down local ordinances that tried to work around it. Any restriction on specific firearm types would have to come from Harrisburg.
Standard-capacity magazines are also unrestricted. Pennsylvania sets no cap on the number of rounds a detachable magazine may hold.
Proposed Bans and Where They Stand
Three recent bills have proposed restricting assault weapons or large-capacity magazines. None has reached a floor vote.
- House Bill 336 (2023–2024), introduced with 53 Democratic co-sponsors, proposed amending Title 18 to prohibit certain assault weapons. The House laid the bill on the table in February 2024, and it went no further.2Pennsylvania General Assembly. House Bill 336
- Senate Bill 200 (2025–2026) proposes banning assault weapons and large-capacity magazines and creating a Firearms and Ammunition Buyback Program run by the Pennsylvania State Police. As of June 2025 it sat in the Senate Judiciary Committee.3Pennsylvania General Assembly. Senate Bill 200
- House Bill 2043 (2025–2026), a companion proposal addressing the same subjects, was referred to the House Judiciary Committee in November 2025.4Pennsylvania General Assembly. House Bill 2043
The Republican-controlled Senate has not moved any of these proposals forward, and the closely divided House has not forced a vote. Passing a ban through both chambers and getting it signed remains a steep climb. New bills tend to appear with each new session, so the proposals keep returning. They just aren’t advancing.
What a Pennsylvania Ban Would Cover If It Passed
The pending bills follow a features-based approach similar to the federal ban that was in effect from 1994 to 2004. They do not target semi-automatic firearms as a category. Instead, they identify semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns that have specific physical characteristics.
For semi-automatic rifles, the typical definition covers any rifle that accepts a detachable magazine and has at least one additional feature: a telescoping or folding stock, a pistol grip below the action, a thumbhole stock, a flash suppressor, or a threaded barrel designed to accept one. Semi-automatic shotguns with revolving cylinders or detachable magazines are included. So are semi-automatic pistols built on rifle-caliber platforms or configured with a second handgrip. The bills also name specific models, including AR-15 and AK-style platforms along with products from manufacturers such as Bushmaster, Colt, and Smith & Wesson.2Pennsylvania General Assembly. House Bill 336
On magazines, the common threshold is any detachable box, drum, or tube capable of holding more than ten rounds of ammunition. The restriction would attach to the magazine itself, whether or not it was in a firearm. Proposals typically extend the definition to fixed magazines that could be readily restored or converted to exceed the limit. Exemptions have been discussed for tubular .22-caliber rimfire magazines, lever-action firearm magazines, and permanently inoperable devices.
Owners of magazines exceeding the limit would face compliance requirements that could include disposal, surrender through a buyback program, or transfer out of state. Senate Bill 200 proposes funding the buyback through a Pennsylvania State Police Buyback Fund.3Pennsylvania General Assembly. Senate Bill 200
A first-offense violation would typically be graded as a third-degree felony. Under Pennsylvania’s sentencing framework that carries up to seven years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. Subsequent offenses, or violations involving sale or transfer of restricted items, would likely carry harsher grading. A felony conviction also triggers seizure of prohibited items and a permanent loss of firearm ownership rights under both state and federal law. Even if a future legislature repealed the ban, that disqualification would remain on your record.
Constitutional Obstacles Any Ban Would Face
Pennsylvania’s state constitution gives firearms owners a protection independent of the Second Amendment. Article I, Section 21 states: “The right of the citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the State shall not be questioned.”5Pennsylvania General Assembly. Constitution of Pennsylvania – Article I The phrase “shall not be questioned” is notably absolute. No Pennsylvania appellate court has ruled on whether that language permits a categorical ban on semi-automatic firearms, because no such ban has been enacted to challenge.
The federal picture is also unsettled. The U.S. Supreme Court has not ruled on whether banning semi-automatic rifles violates the Second Amendment, but it has been building a framework that will eventually force the question. The 2008 Heller decision protected arms in “common use” for lawful purposes while allowing restrictions on “dangerous and unusual weapons.” The 2022 Bruen decision required firearm regulations to be consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of firearms regulation, and the 2024 Rahimi decision refined that historical test.6Congress.gov. Supreme Court Declines Review of Decision Upholding Assault Weapons Ban
Lower courts are split. The Fourth Circuit upheld Maryland’s ban 10–5 in Bianchi v. Brown in 2024, reasoning that the banned weapons are better suited for military use than civilian self-defense. Challengers argue that AR-15-style rifles are among the most commonly owned firearms in America and are therefore protected under Heller‘s “common use” standard.
Several petitions are pending before the Supreme Court. Viramontes v. Cook County, challenging Illinois’s assault weapons ban, has been repeatedly distributed for conference during the 2025–2026 term without a decision on review.7SCOTUSblog. Viramontes v. Cook County Duncan v. Bonta, challenging California’s magazine capacity ban, is in the same posture.8Supreme Court of the United States. Docket for No. 25-198, Duncan v. Bonta Justice Kavanaugh has publicly stated he is “doubtful” the Fourth Circuit was correct and that the Court “should and presumably will” address assault weapons bans “in the next Term or two.”
Any future Pennsylvania ban would face challenges on both fronts. That pending uncertainty is one reason the General Assembly has been slow to act.
Federal Firearms Rules That Still Apply
State law is not the whole picture. Federal law restricts certain categories of firearms regardless of where you live. The National Firearms Act requires registration for machine guns, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, suppressors, and destructive devices. As of January 1, 2026, the federal excise tax for suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and “any other weapons” was reduced to $0. Registration, background checks, fingerprint cards, and passport-style photographs remain mandatory. Machine guns and destructive devices still carry a $200 tax stamp.9FastBound. NFA Tax Stamp 2026 Update for FFLs
Bump stocks are a separate matter. The Supreme Court’s 2024 decision in Garland v. Cargill held that semi-automatic rifles equipped with bump stocks are not machine guns under federal law, and the ATF has since removed the regulatory language classifying them as such. Bump stocks remain legal to possess in Pennsylvania. Future state legislation could change that independently of the federal classification.