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A Southern California city is set to repeal a decades-old restriction limiting handgun purchases after a federal appeals court ruling cast doubt on the constitutionality of similar firearm regulations, marking another significant shift in the legal landscape surrounding gun rights in the United States.
Why Is the City Law Being Repealed?
Inglewood’s local law limited residents to purchasing one handgun every 30 days, a policy originally adopted in 1999.
However, city officials said the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Nguyen v. Bonta “calls into question the validity and enforceability” of the city’s restriction and recommended repealing the ordinance. In that ruling, the court held that California’s statewide one-gun-per-month law violated the Second Amendment, finding that the amendment protects the right to possess multiple firearms and acquire them without meaningful constraint.
The court found that the state had failed to demonstrate a historical tradition supporting restrictions like its one-gun-per-month law, a standard that has become increasingly important in Second Amendment cases following the Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.
In its 2022 ruling in that case, the Supreme Court struck down New York’s requirement that applicants show a special need to carry a handgun in public and established a new test requiring governments to demonstrate that modern gun restrictions are consistent with the country’s historical tradition of firearm regulation.
A lawsuit challenging Inglewood’s law was filed by the Firearms Policy Coalition, the California Gun Rights Foundation and Thomas Lopez, a member of both organizations.
As a result, the city is now moving to repeal its local restriction, adding to the growing national debate over where courts should draw the line between public-safety regulations and constitutional gun rights.
States across the country are taking dramatically different approaches to gun policy. While some continue to impose limits on firearm purchases, others have moved toward fewer restrictions and expanded gun rights.
States That Limit Bulk Gun Purchases
Giffords, a gun-safety group, lists four states with legislation similar to California’s one-gun-per-month law.
Maryland law generally prohibits a person from purchasing more than one regulated firearm within 30 days. However, the state allows exceptions for circumstances such as private collections or collector series, bulk purchases from estate sales, and certain discounted multiple purchases.
Virginia continues to maintain a restriction of one handgun per 30 days, although state lawmakers considered legislation in 2026 that would repeal the limit. State regulations also provide a process through which eligible individuals may apply for approval to purchase more than one handgun within 30 days.
New Jersey likewise maintains a policy that generally allows the purchase of only one handgun every 30 days, while Connecticut generally limits individuals to three handgun purchases within a 30-day period.
Supporters of these laws argue that they help prevent gun trafficking by making it more difficult for buyers to quickly acquire firearms that could later be illegally resold.
Research cited by Giffords suggests firearms purchased in multiple-sale transactions are more likely to be linked to criminal activity.
States Loosening Firearm Regulations
Many states in the South and Mountain West have the most relaxed gun laws in the nation, with Wyoming, Arkansas, Kentucky and Idaho ranking among the least restrictive.
More than half of the states in the union now allow some form of permitless, or “constitutional,” carry—enabling eligible adults to carry concealed firearms without first obtaining a state-issued permit, subject to state-specific restrictions.
States such as Texas, Georgia, Indiana and Ohio have adopted such policies in recent years.
Advocates of permitless carry say eligible adults should be able to carry firearms without first obtaining a government-issued permit, arguing that the Second Amendment already protects that right.
How Gun Laws Vary by State
There is a sharp divide in gun law strength across the United States.
According to Giffords’ Annual Gun Law Scorecard, California, New Jersey, Connecticut, New York and Massachusetts rank among the states with the strongest firearm regulations in the country.
These states generally maintain a range of gun-control measures, including the following:
- background-check requirements
- firearm licensing or permit systems
- waiting periods in some jurisdictions
- restrictions on certain firearms or magazine capacities
The ranking illustrates how state firearm policies remain deeply fragmented, with regulations often varying dramatically from one jurisdiction to another.
What Happens Next
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, states and local governments across the country may face growing pressure to defend existing firearm restrictions or revise them to comply with evolving judicial standards. The debate over how far states can go in regulating gun purchases is likely to continue in courts, legislatures and city halls nationwide.
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Ben Kelly and Shakeema Edwards.
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