Gov. Maura Healey signed an emergency preamble early this month that effectively put a new gun law into immediate effect, expanding Massachusetts’ preexisting firearms regulations—already some of the strictest in the country. The move will crack down on private-made “ghost guns”; criminalize possession of “bump stocks” and trigger cranks; require a gun license for live-fire training; prohibit people outside of law enforcement from carrying guns at schools, polling places, and government buildings; ban the possession, transfer, and sale of assault firearms; and expand “red flag” laws that allow courts to at least temporarily suspend a person’s possession of firearms.
Approved last July, the gun law was originally not due to take effect until Oct. 23, but Gov. Healey’s emergency action has sped up the schedule. In doing so, the governor has blocked any temporary suspension of the law—thereby frustrating gun rights advocates and other opponents who view the law as infringing on their rights. Opponents of Gov. Healey’s actions called them a gross overstepping of her powers. Previously, the opposing Civil Rights Coalition had been planning on gathering enough signatures to temporarily suspend the gun law until it could be put before voters in 2026 and repealed. In order to achieve this, the coalition would have had to gather 37,287 signatures by Oct. 9 to put the gun law on the 2026 ballot, and 49,716 signatures for the temporary suspension. Reports indicate that the coalition already collected more than 65,000 signatures—enough to achieve their goal.
Now, however, those hopes have been dashed. Gov. Healey’s emergency preamble blocks temporary suspension, ensuring that the law will remain in effect for at least the next two years . According to the state constitution, the governor does have the ability to declare laws an emergency, either as or after she signs the bill. But opponents take a less generous view, arguing that Healey’s actions were motivated by the coalition being on the verge of suspending the bill.
“The only reason she’s signing this as an emergency preamble is because they don’t want this suspended,” said Toby Leary, one of the leaders of the Civil Rights Coalition, in a statement. “If this were truly a public health emergency, she would have enacted the preamble when the bill was signed back in July. Now that we are close to gathering the signatures needed to suspend the law for two years, she’s invoking an emergency preamble to sidestep the will of the people.”
Leary also pointed out the damaging effects the gun law—especially the provision prohibiting the sale of rifles and shotguns—will have on gun sellers, including himself. “As a store owner, I’m faced with two choices—break the law to stay open or stop selling guns and close my business. After a decade of hard work, my state government is trying to destroy my business’s future,” Leary said. “She’s acting more like a dictator than a governor.”
Massachusetts’s Republican Party has taken a similar stance, releasing a statement that accused Gov. Healey of “deliberately subverting the democratic process and trampling on the people’s right to petition.”
On the other hand, Massachusetts’ robust gun laws are central to the state’s low rate of firearms violence—one of the lowest in the country, in fact. Healey’s rhetoric on the subject has also been unwavering, arguing that the gun law is “necessary to preserve public peace, health, safety, and convenience” of the people of Massachusetts. “This gun safety law bans ghost guns, strengthens the Extreme Risk Protection Order statute to keep guns out of the hands of people who are a danger to themselves or others, and invests in violence prevention programs,” Healey said. “It is important that these measures go into effect without delay.”
This latest gun law and Governor Healey’s actions can be viewed as a natural continuation of the stricter stance Massachusetts has adopted on the subject of firearms over the course of the last century. Prior to 1906, gun laws were lax to the extent of being virtually nonexistent; there were no restrictions on owning or carrying guns. Before 1968, no license was required to possess firearms in one’s home or business place, and only carrying handguns outside the home or business required a license. Not until the 21st century did Massachusetts’s gun laws come to resemble its contours today. Currently, there are two types of firearms license in Massachusetts. A Firearms Identification Card (FID) is available to residents 15 years and older, allowing possession and carrying of rifles and shotguns that are not large capacity or semi-automatic. A License-to-Carry (LTC) enables residents 21 years and older to possess and carry rifles and shotguns, including those that are large capacity and semi-automatic. All firearms licenses are issued by local police departments, and first-time applicants must first successfully complete a safety course. There are also regulations in place for the storage and transport of firearms.
The right to bear arms remains a contentious issue, not just in Massachusetts but on a national level. On one side, Massachusetts’ new gun law will undeniably impact gun owners and sellers ,and Gov. Healey’s signing of the emergency preamble does raise troubling questions about the exercise of gubernatorial powers. On the other side, it is also precisely such laws that ensure Massachusetts’ low rates of gun violence and Gov. Healey is not alone in the opinion that “strong gun laws save lives. This law is the state’s most significant gun safety legislation in a decade. It will make Massachusetts safer as soon as it goes into effect.”
