Democrat Bill Mandates Licensing of All Virginia AR-15 Owners

A bill from Delegate Mark Levine (D) mandates all Virginia AR-15 owners acquire a license of ownership from the state.

Those who do not acquire a license yet remain in possession of AR-15s will be labeled felons.

Levine’s legislation, HB 961, applies to AR-15s and all guns which Democrats refer to as “assault firearms.”

Levine defines an “assault firearm” as “a semi-automatic center-fire rifle that expels single or multiple projectiles by action of an explosion of a combustible material with a fixed magazine capacity in excess of 10 rounds.”

He also notes certain cosmetic traits that place a certain gun under the “assault firearm” classification:

An “assault firearm” means a semi-automatic center-fire rifle that expels single or multiple projectiles by action of an explosion of a combustible material that has the ability to accept a detachable magazine and has one of the following characteristics: (i) a folding or telescoping stock; (ii) a pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the rifle; (iii) a thumbhole stock; (iv) a second handgrip or a protruding grip that can be held by the non-trigger hand; (v) a bayonet mount; (vi) a grenade launcher; (vii) a flare launcher; (viii) a silencer; (ix) a flash suppressor; (x) a muzzle brake; (xi) a muzzle compensator; (xii) a threaded barrel capable of accepting (a) a silencer, (b) a flash suppressor, (c) a muzzle brake, or (d) a muzzle compensator; or (xiii) any characteristic of like kind as enumerated in clauses (i) through (xii).

If Levine’s bill passes the state legislature and is signed into law, current AR-15 owners–and owners of other so-called “assault firearms”–will have a grace period in which to acquire license from the state.