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LD1062 • 2025

An Act to Eliminate Background Checks for Private Sales of Firearms

An Act to Eliminate Background Checks for Private Sales of Firearms

Firearms
Did Not Pass

The latest official action shows that this bill did not move forward in that session.

Sponsor
Representative Jennifer Poirier
Last action
2025-06-13
Official status
Taken from the table by the President On motion by Senator LAWRENCE of York, the Senate RECONSIDERED whereby it FAILED to ACCEPT the Majority Ought Not to Pass Report. The Majority Ought Not To Pass Report ACCEPTED PREVAILED Roll Call Ordered Roll Call Number 536 Yeas 18 - Nays 15 - Excused 2 - Absent 0 Placed in Legislative Files ( DEAD )
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

An Act to Eliminate Background Checks for Private Sales of Firearms

An Act to Eliminate Background Checks for Private Sales of Firearms Sponsor: Representative Jennifer Poirier Reference committee: Judiciary Latest committee action: Reported Out; ONTP/OTP

What This Bill Does

  • An Act to Eliminate Background Checks for Private Sales of Firearms Sponsor: Representative Jennifer Poirier Reference committee: Judiciary Latest committee action: Reported Out; ONTP/OTP

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2025-06-13 Senate

    Taken from the table by the President On motion by Senator LAWRENCE of York, the Senate RECONSIDERED whereby it FAILED to ACCEPT the Majority Ought Not to Pass Report. The Majority Ought Not To Pass Report ACCEPTED PREVAILED Roll Call Ordered Roll Call Number 536 Yeas 18 - Nays 15 - Excused 2 - Absent 0 Placed in Legislative Files ( DEAD )

  2. 2025-06-12 House

    Reports READ . On motion of Representative KUHN of Falmouth, the Majority Ought Not to Pass Report was ACCEPTED . ROLL CALL NO. 456 (Yeas 76 - Nays 72 - Absent 1 - Excused 2) Sent for concurrence. ORDERED SENT FORTHWITH.

  3. 2025-06-11 Committee

    Reported Out; ONTP/OTP

  4. 2025-05-07 Committee

    Work Session Held

  5. 2025-05-07 Committee

    Voted; Divided Report

  6. 2025-04-24 Committee

    Work Session Held; TABLED

  7. 2025-03-12 Committee

    Referred to Committee on Judiciary.

Official Summary Text

An Act to Eliminate Background Checks for Private Sales of Firearms
Sponsor:
Representative Jennifer Poirier
Reference committee:
Judiciary
Latest committee action:
Reported Out; ONTP/OTP

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
Printed on recycled paper
132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2025
Legislative Document No. 1062
H.P. 691 House of Representatives, March 14, 2025
An Act to Eliminate Background Checks for Private Sales of
Firearms
Received by the Clerk of the House on March 12, 2025. Referred to the Committee on
Judiciary pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative POIRIER of Skowhegan.
Cosponsored by Representatives: ARDELL of Monticello, HAGGAN of Hampden, MORRIS
of Turner, NUTTING of Oakland, RUDNICKI of Fairfield, SMITH of Palermo, THORNE of
Carmel, WADSWORTH of Hiram.

Page 1 - 132LR1318(01)
1Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
2Sec. 1. 15 MRSA §395, sub-§1, ¶A, as enacted by PL 2023, c. 675, §6, is repealed.
3Sec. 2. 15 MRSA §395, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2023, c. 675, §6, is repealed and
4 the following enacted in its place:
52. Transactions covered by this section. This section applies only to transactions in
6 which a dealer sells to a buyer at a gun show.
7Sec. 3. 15 MRSA §395, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 2023, c. 675, §6, is amended to
8 read:
94. Requirement for transactions covered by this section. A seller who is not a
10 federally licensed firearms dealer may not complete a transaction to which this section
11 applies unless the seller facilitates the transaction through a federally licensed firearms
12 dealer. The dealer shall perform a background check of the putative buyer in a transaction
13 to which this section applies by using the Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Instant
14 Criminal Background Check System in the same manner as if the dealer were the seller of
15 the firearm that is the subject of the transaction. If the background check reveals that the
16 putative buyer is prohibited from purchasing a firearm, the dealer shall notify the seller of
17 that fact and of the fact that the transaction may not proceed. The dealer may charge a
18 reasonable fee for serving as the facilitator.
19SUMMARY
20 This bill amends the law governing background checks of firearms buyers to eliminate
21 background checks for private sales of firearms.
20
21