Overview
- California’s Assembly Bill 1127, signed last fall, creates a new category called “machinegun‑convertible pistols” and bars licensed dealers from selling newly stocked models when the restriction takes effect on July 1, 2026.
- The law does not criminalize existing ownership and allows private‑party transfers while exempting some government purchases, but it directs dealers to stop retail sales of covered handguns.
- Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon’s Civil Rights Division sent a formal pre‑suit letter on June 24–25 that demands negotiations by June 30 and says the state must stop enforcement or face a federal lawsuit alleging Second Amendment violations.
- Key implementation questions — which specific models qualify, how dealers may treat inventory already purchased, and how state and local agencies will enforce the rule — remain unresolved and are likely to be central issues in litigation.
- Coverage is sharply divided: proponents frame the measure as blocking easy aftermarket conversion devices known as “Glock switches,” while critics and conservative outlets say the law punishes lawful buyers and that gun‑rights groups and the DOJ are poised to challenge it in court.