Rhode Island’s gun safety laws are more comprehensive than most other states, but lawmakers can still do more to save lives from gun violence.
Rhode Island enacted an extreme risk protection order law in 2018 that empowers law enforcement to temporarily disarm individuals at elevated risk of violence. In 2017, Rhode Island had the fourth-lowest gun death rate among the states and imported twice as many crime guns as it exported. To help save lives from gun violence, Rhode Island legislators should consider restricting untraceable and undetectable firearms (also known as ghost guns) and funding community violence intervention programs.
What Rhode Island Does Well
- Universal background checks
- Partial gun owner licensing
- Extreme risk protection orders
- Certain domestic violence gun laws
- Waiting periods
- Strong concealed carry law
- Certain open carry regulations
- Child access prevention laws
- Community violence intervention funding
- Lost & stolen firearm reporting
What Rhode Island Is Missing
- Assault weapon restrictions
- Large capacity magazine ban
- Bulk firearm purchase restrictions
- Handgun design safety standards
- Local authority to regulate firearms
EXPLORE RHODE ISLAND’S GUN LAWS
WHO CAN HAVE A GUN
OWNER RESPONSIBILITIES
CHILD & CONSUMER SAFETY
HARDWARE & AMMUNITION
OTHER LAWS & POLICIES
SUPPORT GUN SAFETY
We’re in this together. To build a safer America—one where children and parents in every neighborhood can learn, play, work, and worship without fear of gun violence—we need you standing beside us in this fight.
