Last updated July 2026 · By Nick Hall, covers gun laws and the Second Amendment for USA Gun Shop
Quick take: On July 1, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state of California, naming Attorney General Rob Bonta, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California. The suit asks the court to block two California gun laws — the new ‘Glock ban’ and the state’s long-standing handgun roster — arguing both violate the Second Amendment. A lawsuit being filed is not a ruling; nothing has been decided.
- What it is: A federal lawsuit by the DOJ against California over two firearms laws.
- Key detail: The DOJ argues both restrictions are unconstitutional under the Second Amendment.
- The laws: California Penal Code section 27595 (the ‘Glock ban,’ effective July 1, 2026) and the state’s handgun roster under the Unsafe Handgun Act.
- Who it affects: California handgun buyers, licensed dealers, and manufacturers watching which pistols may be sold in the state.
What the Justice Department is challenging
The DOJ’s complaint targets two separate California measures at once. According to the Justice Department, both laws restrict access to handguns in ways that conflict with the Second Amendment. The first is California Penal Code section 27595, a provision widely described as the ‘Glock ban,’ which bars licensed dealers from selling what the statute calls ‘semiautomatic machinegun-convertible pistols.’ That provision took effect July 1, 2026 — the same day the lawsuit was filed.
The second target is California’s handgun roster, the list maintained under the state’s Unsafe Handgun Act that determines which new handgun models may legally be sold to the public. The DOJ contends that both restrictions, taken together, unconstitutionally limit which firearms Californians can buy. Readers tracking how this fits into the broader landscape can review our US Gun Laws by State: 2026 Directory.
Inside the so-called ‘Glock ban’
The ‘Glock ban’ focuses on pistols the state says can be converted to fire automatically. California’s concern centers on the illegal auto-sear — often called a ‘switch,’ a small illicit device that can convert a semi-automatic pistol into one that fires like a machine gun. The state’s law aims at pistols it describes as convertible in this way.
Critics of the measure argue the language is far broader than a narrow anti-switch rule, saying it sweeps in many common semi-automatic handguns that are owned lawfully across the country. That gap — between what the state says it is regulating and what gun-rights advocates say the law actually reaches — sits at the heart of the DOJ’s Second Amendment argument. The Justice Department’s position is that the provision goes too far.
How the handgun roster works
California’s handgun roster limits which new pistols dealers can put on the shelf. Under the Unsafe Handgun Act, a new handgun model must meet certain requirements before it can join the state’s approved-for-sale list. One of those requirements is microstamping — a technology intended to mark cartridge cases with identifying information when a round is fired.
In practice, gun-rights groups say those feature mandates have kept many modern pistols off the roster, narrowing the selection available to buyers in the state compared with the rest of the country. The DOJ argues the roster’s restrictions are unconstitutional under the Second Amendment. For shoppers weighing everyday-carry options generally, our guide to the 12 Best 9mm Concealed Carry Guns (2026) covers popular models on the wider market.
The federal-vs-state fight and what comes next
This is the federal government suing a state over its own gun laws. The Justice Department brought the case in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, asking the court to block enforcement of both measures. It was filed the same day as a separate DOJ lawsuit against Virginia over that state’s firearms rules.
It is worth repeating that filing a lawsuit is not the same as winning one. No court has ruled on the merits, and California will have the opportunity to defend its laws. How a judge weighs the state’s public-safety rationale against the DOJ’s Second Amendment claims will play out over the coming months. We will update this post as the case develops.
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