Date saved: 2026-10-20 18:00 (PDT)
Sources: Congress.gov, Giffords Law Center, PCMag, Washington State Legislature, California Legislative Information, New York State Legislature, Colorado General Assembly
Key findings
Federal bill: 3D Printed Gun Safety Act of 2025
- S.2165, 119th Congress (2025-2026): The 3D Printed Gun Safety Act would amend Chapter 44 of Title 18 of the U.S. Code to prohibit the distribution of 3D printer plans for printing firearms. The bill makes it unlawful for any person to "intentionally distribute, over the internet or by means of the World Wide Web, digital instructions in the form of Computer Aided Design files or other code that can automatically program a 3-dimensional printer or similar device to produce a firearm or complete a firearm from an unfinished frame or receiver." Congress finds that "recent technological developments have allowed for the 3D printing of firearms and firearm parts, including parts made out of plastic, by unlicensed individuals in possession of relatively inexpensive 3D printers." (Source)
California: most aggressive state-level framework
- Giffords Law Center (updated Feb 12, 2026): California requires any person, firm, or corporation to obtain a firearm manufacturer's license from the California DOJ to legally manufacture more than three firearms in a calendar year (or to use a 3D printer to manufacture any number of firearms. Effective June 30, 2022, California also requires at minimum a valid federal firearms manufacturer or importer license to use a CNC milling machine to manufacture a firearm, including a completed or unfinished frame or receiver. California law now makes it generally unlawful to sell, offer to sell, or transfer a CNC milling machine or 3D printer that has the sole or primary function of manufacturing firearms to anyone without a federal firearms manufacturer or importer license) and makes it unlawful for unlicensed people to possess, purchase, or receive such machines. (Source)
- AB 1263 (2025): Updated California's ghost gun regulations to clarify and strengthen laws relating to the distribution of digital firearm manufacturing codes, the code used to instruct a 3D printer or CNC milling machine to produce a firearm. The law now also prohibits distribution of codes relating to rapid-fire devices and large capacity magazines. AB 1263 includes a rebuttable presumption that a website owner violated the law if their site makes digital firearm manufacturing code available and encourages individuals to upload, disseminate, or use it to manufacture firearms. (Source)
- AB 2047 (proposed): Would require 3D printers sold in California to incorporate technology to detect and block the production of firearm components, uploaded design files would be scrutinized by AI programs, supplemented by human oversight. (Source)
Washington State: upstream regulation of digital files
- Washington State HB 2320 (enacted 2025): Washington crossed a significant legal threshold by regulating not just the physical firearms but the digital ecosystem that makes them possible. The law makes it unlawful to manufacture a frame or receiver using a 3D printer, CNC milling machine, or other means without a federal firearms manufacturer license. It prohibits selling, transferring, distributing, or offering to sell "digital firearm manufacturing code" (defined as any digital instructions in the form of CAD files or other code that may be used to program a 3D printer or CNC milling machine to manufacture a firearm, frame or receiver, unfinished frame or receiver, magazine, or unlawful firearm part) to an unlicensed person. It also prohibits possessing such code with intent to distribute to an unlicensed person or intent to manufacture a firearm. (Source)
New York, Colorado, and the wider trend
- New York (signed May 2026): A first-of-its-kind law requires that 3D printers include blocking technology; uploaded parts files are reviewed by AI programs with an additional layer of human intervention. (Source)
- Colorado HB26-1144 (signed 2026): Takes a more direct route, criminalizing the manufacture of certain firearms and parts using 3D printing. (Source)
- PCMag analysis: "The government's ghost gun battle is taking aim at something much bigger: innovation." Washington's HB 2320 "didn't just target untraceable firearms, it reached upstream into the ecosystem that makes them possible, regulating digital firearm files, restricting their distribution, and explicitly pulling 3D printers and CNC machines into the legal framework." California's AB 2047 "would require printers to actively scan and block certain designs." The broader concern: these measures could fundamentally reshape the 3D printing and digital manufacturing landscape, extending legal liability upstream to the tools and files rather than just the final product. (Source)
- CNC and subtractive manufacturing: California explicitly includes CNC milling machines in its licensing requirements, recognizing these machines can carve firearms from metal blocks. Washington's law similarly covers "CNC milling machine" alongside 3D printers. The legal framework is increasingly treating additive and subtractive digital manufacturing as functionally equivalent for regulatory purposes. (Source)
Source links
- Congress.gov: Text of S.2165: 3D Printed Gun Safety Act of 2025
- Giffords Law Center: Ghost Guns in California
- PCMag UK: The Government's Ghost Gun Battle Is Taking Aim at Something Much Bigger: Innovation
- PCMag: The Ghost Gun Crackdown Is Quietly Threatening the Future of 3D Printing
- Washington State Legislature: HB 2320 Bill Report