Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) signed a ban on popular semiautomatic rifles and shotguns into law Thursday which will take effect July 1, 2026.
On March 9, 2026, Breitbart News reported the ban had cleared the Virginia legislature and was headed to Spanberger’s desk.
Ammoland News noted that the legislation, SB 749, specifies that “importing, selling, purchasing, or transferring a prohibited firearm would be a Class 1 misdemeanor.” It also “restricts the sale or transfer of certain large-capacity magazines defined in the statute.”
SB 749 also bans a number of semiautomatic shotguns and certain semiautomatic, centerfire pistols, WRIC reported
WTVR pointed out that Spanberger signed the ban Thursday and subsequently released a statement, which said in part, “I am signing this bill into law because firearms designed to inflict maximum casualties do not belong on our streets. We are taking this step to protect families and support the law enforcement officers who work every day to keep our communities safe.”
On April 10, 2026, Breitbart News noted that Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon made clear the DOJ would sue Virginia if Spanberger signed the “assault weapons” ban. Time to watch and see.
AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio and the director of global marketing for Lone Star Hunts. He holds a PhD in Military History with a focus on the Vietnam War (brown water navy), U.S. Navy since Inception, the Civil War, and Early Modern Europe. He enjoys reading Philosophy and novels by Jack Carr and Nelson DeMille. He is a lever action man in an AR-15 world. Follow him on X: @awrhawkins. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.
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