Upgrades certain crimes related to manufacturing firearms from second to first degree.

S3232

SENATE, No. 3232

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 2, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� SHIRLEY K. TURNER

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

SYNOPSIS

���� Upgrades certain crimes related to manufacturing
firearms from second to first degree.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning manufacturing of firearms and amending
N.J.S.2C:39-9.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� N.J.S.2C:39-9 is amended
to read as follows:

���� 2C:39-9.� Manufacture,
Transport, Disposition and Defacement of Weapons and Dangerous Instruments and
Appliances.

���� a.���� Machine guns.� Any
person who manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports, ships, sells or
disposes of any machine gun without being registered or licensed to do so as
provided in chapter 58 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes is guilty of a crime
of the third degree.

���� b.��� Sawed-off shotguns.� Any
person who manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports, ships, sells or
disposes of any sawed-off shotgun is guilty of a crime of the third degree.

���� c.���� Firearm silencers.� Any
person who manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports, ships, sells or
disposes of any firearm silencer is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.

���� d.��� Weapons.� Any person who
manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports, ships, sells or disposes
of any weapon, including gravity knives, switchblade knives, ballistic knives,
daggers, dirks, stilettos, billies, blackjacks, metal knuckles, sandclubs,
slingshots, cesti or similar leather bands studded with metal filings, or,
except as otherwise provided in subsection i. of this section, in the case of
firearms if he is not licensed or registered to do so as provided in chapter 58
of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes, is guilty of a crime of the fourth
degree.� Any person who manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports,
ships, sells or disposes of any weapon or other device which projects, releases
or emits tear gas or other substances intended to produce temporary physical
discomfort or permanent injury through being vaporized or otherwise dispensed
in the air, which is intended to be used for any purpose other than for
authorized military or law enforcement purposes by duly authorized military or
law enforcement personnel or the device is for the purpose of personal
self-defense, is pocket-sized and contains not more than three-quarters of an
ounce of chemical substance not ordinarily capable of lethal use or of
inflicting serious bodily injury, or other than to be used by any person
permitted to possess such weapon or device under the provisions of subsection
d. of N.J.S.2C:39-5, which is intended for use by financial and other business
institutions as part of an integrated security system, placed at fixed
locations, for the protection of money and property, by the duly authorized
personnel of those institutions, is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.

���� e.���� Defaced firearms.� Any
person who defaces any firearm is guilty of a crime of the third degree.� Any
person who knowingly buys, receives, disposes of or conceals a defaced firearm,
except an antique firearm or an antique handgun, is guilty of a crime of the
fourth degree.

���� f.���� (1) Any person who
manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports, ships, sells, or disposes
of any armor-piercing ammunition, as defined in subsection gg. of
N.J.S.2C:39-1, which is intended to be used for any purpose other than for
authorized military or law enforcement purposes by duly authorized military or
law enforcement personnel, is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.

���� (2) Nothing in this subsection
shall be construed to prevent a licensed collector of ammunition as defined in
paragraph (2) of subsection f. of N.J.S.2C:39-3 from transporting the bullets
defined in paragraph (1) of this subsection from (a) any licensed retail or
wholesale firearms dealer's place of business to the collector's dwelling,
premises, or other land owned or possessed by him, or (b) to or from the
collector's dwelling, premises or other land owned or possessed by him to any
gun show for the purposes of display, sale, trade, or transfer between
collectors, or (c) to or from the collector's dwelling, premises or other land
owned or possessed by him to any rifle or pistol club organized in accordance
with the rules prescribed by the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle
Practice; provided that the club has filed a copy of its charter with the
superintendent of the State Police and annually submits a list of its members
to the superintendent, and provided further that the ammunition being transported
shall be carried not loaded in any firearm and contained in a closed and
fastened case, gun box, or locked in the trunk of the automobile in which it is
being transported, and the course of travel shall include only such deviations
as are reasonably necessary under the circumstances.

���� g.��� Assault firearms.� Any
person who manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports, ships, sells or
disposes of an assault firearm without being registered or licensed to do so
pursuant to N.J.S.2C:58-1 et seq. is guilty of a crime of the third degree.

���� h.��� Large capacity
ammunition magazines.� Any person who manufactures, causes to be manufactured,
transports, ships, sells or disposes of a large capacity ammunition magazine
which is intended to be used for any purpose other than for authorized military
or law enforcement purposes by duly authorized military or law enforcement
personnel is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.

���� i.���� Transporting firearms
into this State for an unlawful sale or transfer.� Any person who knowingly
transports, ships or otherwise brings into this State any firearm for the
purpose of unlawfully selling, transferring, giving, assigning or otherwise
disposing of that firearm to another individual is guilty of a crime of the
second degree.� Any motor vehicle used by a person to transport, ship, or
otherwise bring a firearm into this State for unlawful sale or transfer shall
be subject to forfeiture in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.2C:64-1 et
seq.; provided however, this forfeiture provision shall not apply to innocent
owners, nor shall it affect the rights of a holder of a valid lien.

���� The temporary transfer of a
firearm shall not constitute a violation of this subsection if that firearm is
transferred:

���� (1) while hunting or target
shooting in accordance with the provisions of section 1 of P.L.1992, c.74
(C.2C:58-3.1);

���� (2) for shooting competitions
sponsored by a licensed dealer, law enforcement agency, legally recognized
military organization, or a rifle or pistol club which has filed a copy of its
charter with the superintendent in accordance with the provisions of section 1
of P.L.1992, c.74 (C.2C:58-3.1); or

���� (3) for participation in a
training course conducted by a certified instructor in accordance with the
provisions of section 1 of P.L.1997, c.375 (C.2C:58-3.2).

���� The transfer of any firearm
that uses air or carbon dioxide to expel a projectile; or the transfer of an
antique firearm shall not constitute a violation of this subsection.

���� j.���� Any person who
manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports, ships, sells, or disposes
of a bump stock as defined in subsection ee. of N.J.S.2C:39-1 or a trigger
crank as defined in subsection ff. of N.J.S.2C:39-1 is guilty of a crime of the
third degree.

���� k.���
[
Purchasing
]

Possessing,
purchasing, or otherwise obtaining

firearm parts to manufacture a firearm without a serial
number.� In addition to any other criminal penalties provided under law, a
person who, with the purpose to manufacture or otherwise assemble a firearm and
without being registered or licensed do so as provided in chapter 58 of Title
2C of the New Jersey Statutes,
possesses,

purchases or otherwise obtains separately or as part of a kit a firearm frame
or firearm receiver which is not imprinted with a serial number registered with
a federally licensed manufacturer or any combination of parts from which a
firearm without a serial number may be readily manufactured or otherwise
assembled, but which does not have the capacity to function as a firearm unless
manufactured or otherwise assembled is guilty of a crime of the
[
second
]

first

degree.� Notwithstanding the provisions of N.J.S.2C:1-8 or any other law, a
conviction under this subsection shall not merge with a conviction for any
other criminal offense and the court shall impose separate sentences upon a
violation of this subsection and any other criminal offense.

���� As used in this subsection,
"firearm frame or firearm receiver" means the part of a firearm that
provides housing for the firearm's internal components, such as the hammer,
bolt or breechblock, action, and firing mechanism, and includes without
limitation any object or part which is not a firearm frame or receiver in
finished form but is designed or intended to be used for that purpose and which
may readily be made into a firearm frame or receiver through milling or other
means.

���� l.���� Manufacturing or
facilitating the manufacture of a firearm using a three-dimensional printer.�
In addition to any other criminal penalties provided under law it is a
[
second
]

first
-degree
crime for:

���� (1) a person who is not
registered or licensed to do so as a manufacturer as provided in chapter 58 of
Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes, to use a three-dimensional printer or
similar device to manufacture or produce a firearm, firearm receiver, magazine,
or firearm component; or

���� (2) a person to distribute by
any means, including the Internet, to a person in New Jersey who is not
registered or licensed as a manufacturer as provided in chapter 58 of Title 2C
of the New Jersey Statutes, digital instructions in the form of computer-aided
design files or other code or instructions stored and displayed in electronic
format as a digital model that may be used to program a three-dimensional
printer to manufacture or produce a firearm, firearm receiver, magazine, or
firearm component.

���� As used in this subsection:
"three-dimensional printer" means a computer or computer-driven
machine or device capable of producing a three-dimensional object from a
digital model; and "distribute" means to sell, or to manufacture, give,
provide, lend, trade, mail, deliver, publish, circulate, disseminate, present,
exhibit, display, share, advertise, offer, or make available via the Internet
or by any other means, whether for pecuniary gain or not, and includes an
agreement or attempt to distribute.

���� m.�� Covert or undetectable
firearms.� Any person who manufactures, causes to be manufactured, transports,
ships, sells or disposes of any covert firearm as defined in subsection hh. of
N.J.S.2C:39-1 or any undetectable firearm as defined in subsection ii. of
N.J.S.2C:39-1 is guilty of a crime of the
[
second
]

first

degree.

���� n.��� Transporting a
manufactured firearm without a serial number.� In addition to any other
criminal penalties provided under law, a person who transports, ships, sells,
or disposes of a firearm manufactured or otherwise assembled using a firearm
frame or firearm receiver as defined in subsection k. of this section
, or a firearm frame or firearm receiver, separately
or as part of a kit,

which
is not imprinted with a serial number registered with a federally licensed
manufacturer, including but not limited to a firearm manufactured or otherwise
assembled from parts purchased or otherwise obtained in violation of subsection
k. of this section, is guilty of a crime of the
[
second
]

first
degree. �
This
subsection shall not apply to a firearm which is not required to be imprinted
with a serial number in accordance with federal law.

(cf: P.L.2022, c.53, s.1)

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.

STATEMENT

���� This bill upgrades the penalty
for: purchasing firearm parts to manufacture a firearm without a serial number;
manufacturing a firearm with a three-dimensional printer; distributing digital
instructions to an unlicensed person to manufacture a firearm or certain
components of a firearm using a three-dimensional printer; manufacturing a
covert or undetectable firearm; and transporting a manufactured firearm without
a serial number from second degree crimes to first degree crimes.

���� Under current law, it is a
second degree crime for a person:

�

not licensed as a manufacturer to purchase or otherwise obtain
separately or as part of a kit a firearm frame or firearm receiver which is not
imprinted with a serial number with the purpose to manufacture or assemble a
firearm;

�

not licensed as a manufacturer to manufacture a firearm or
certain components of a firearm using a three-dimensional printer;

�

to distribute to an unlicensed person, including via the
Internet, digital instructions to manufacture a firearm or certain components
of a firearm using a three-dimensional printer;

�

to manufacture, cause to be manufactured, transport, ship, sell,
or dispose of any covert firearm or undetectable firearm; and

�

to transport, ship, sell, or dispose of a firearm manufactured
without a serial number.

���� The bill�s provisions upgrade
each of these offenses to first degree crimes.� A crime of the second degree is
punishable by five to 10 years imprisonment, a fine of up to $150,000, or both.
�A crime of the first degree is punishable by 10 to 20 years imprisonment, a
fine of up to $200,000, or both.

���� The bill also clarifies that
the prohibition on purchasing firearm parts to manufacture a firearm without a
serial number under current law also includes a prohibition on possessing or
otherwise obtaining firearm parts to manufacture a firearm without a serial
number.

���� In addition, the bill
clarifies that the prohibition on transporting a manufactured firearm without a
serial number under current law also applies to a firearm frame or firearm
receiver, separately or as part of a kit, in addition to firearms.

���� Finally, the bill provides
that current law prohibiting transporting a manufactured firearm without a
serial number does not apply to a firearm which is not required to be imprinted
with a serial number in accordance with federal law.