The Senate’s gun control mega-hearing
Senate Judiciary and Public Safety spent nearly eight hours on gun control bills, from a semi-automatic rifle and magazine ban to a binary trigger ban. The DFL majority advanced six of them; the Capitol carry ban was laid over.
At a glance
The hearing
- When: Friday, March 13, 2026, starting at 8:30 AM. The hearing lasted nearly 8 hours.
- What was heard: SF 513, SF 1580, SF 2320, SF 3572, SF 3631, SF 3655, and SF 4200, plus ten other bills listed below. SF 3549 was withdrawn, and SF 3661 was moved to the March 16 hearing.
- Results:
- Advanced on party-line votes: SF 513, SF 1580, SF 2320, SF 3572, SF 3655 (6-3), and SF 4200
- Laid over: SF 3631, the Capitol carry ban
- The Caucus submitted written testimony on every gun control bill below and testified in person where the committee let us
SF 513
SF 513: establishing the “Office of Gun Violence Prevention”
Chief author
- Senator Alice Mann (SD 50, DFL)
What it would have done
- Created a permanent “Office of Gun Violence Prevention” in the Minnesota Department of Health
- Empowered a new state office to develop and promote gun control policies under the banner of “research” and “public health”
- Authorized coordination with national gun control advocacy groups and outside activists to shape Minnesota firearm laws
- Funded public messaging campaigns and legislative recommendations designed to expand firearm restrictions
- Required ongoing taxpayer funding for a permanent government infrastructure dedicated to advancing gun control
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill and testified against it.
What happened
- Advanced to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee on a voice vote along party lines
- Its next stop was the Senate Health and Human Services Committee
Written testimony
Our committee testimony
SF 1580
SF 1580: Violence Prevention Project research center appropriation
Chief author
- Senator Sandy Pappas (SD 65, DFL)
What it would have done
- Directly allocated $1,000,000 to the Commissioner of Public Safety to give to a Minnesota-based research center for “gun violence”
- The only center that meets this criterion is the anti-gun, pro-gun control Violence Project at Hamline University
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill and testified against it.
What happened
- Advanced to the Senate Finance Committee on a voice vote along party lines
- Its next stop was the Senate Finance Committee
Written testimony
Our committee testimony
SF 2320
SF 2320: preemption repeal for government buildings and land
Chief author
- Senator Sandy Pappas (SD 65, DFL)
What it would have done
- Modified Minnesota’s preemption law to let city, county, and township governments prohibit the carry of firearms in government-owned or leased buildings and land
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill.
What happened
- Advanced to the Senate State and Local Government Committee on a voice vote along party lines
- Its next stop was the Senate State and Local Government Committee
Written testimony
Committee testimony
- We were not “allowed” to testify against this bill: committee partisan staff told us the “schedule was full.”
SF 3549
SF 3549: total preemption repeal (withdrawn)
SF 3549, a total repeal of preemption, was withdrawn from the March 13, 2026 hearing. Our written testimony above covered both SF 2320 and SF 3549.
SF 3572
SF 3572: ending school carry permission
Chief author
- Senator Steve Cwodzinski (SD 49, DFL)
What it would have done
- Repealed the authority of a principal to let permit to carry holders carry a firearm on school property
- Set specific storage requirements for a firearm stored in a vehicle on school property
- Prohibited firearms at any activity or event sponsored by the Minnesota State High School League
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill and testified against it.
What happened
- Advanced to the Senate Education Policy Committee on a roll call vote
- All GOP members voted against; all DFL members voted in favor
- Its next stop was the Senate Education Policy Committee
Written testimony
Caucus committee testimony
SF 3631
SF 3631: ban on lawful carry at the State Capitol complex
Chief author
- Senator Bonnie Westlin (SD 42, DFL)
What it would have done
- Prohibited the lawful carry of firearms at the Minnesota State Capitol complex
- Today, any permit to carry holder may carry on the grounds and in the buildings of the State Capitol complex
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill.
What happened
- Laid over; it stayed in the Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee
- Senator Seeberger spoke against this bill
Written testimony
Committee testimony
- We were not “allowed” to testify against this bill: committee partisan staff told us the “schedule was full.”
SF 3655
SF 3655: semi-automatic rifle and magazine ban
Chief author
- Senator Zaynab Mohamed (SD 63)
What it would have done
- A total ban on the sale, transfer, and possession of almost all semi-automatic rifles and magazines holding more than 10 rounds in Minnesota
- Grandfathering for the current owner only, with no transfers allowed
- A certificate at an unknown cost; law enforcement could inspect your home for “safe storage” whenever they wanted, without a warrant; and the firearm could only be kept at home or at a “licensed firing range”
- Similar to the semi-automatic and magazine bans heard in the Minnesota House in February
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill.
What happened
- Advanced to the Senate Finance Committee on a 6-3 roll call vote: all 6 DFL members voted for it, all 3 GOP members present voted against it, and 1 GOP Senator (Westrom) was absent
- Its next stop was the Senate Finance Committee. Every semi-automatic and magazine ban of the session: Semi-automatic and magazine bans
Written testimony
Committee testimony
- We were not “allowed” to testify against this bill: committee partisan staff told us the “schedule was full.”
SF 3661
SF 3661: private manufacturing of firearms ban
Note: this bill was moved from this hearing to the Monday, March 16 Senate Judiciary hearing.
Chief author
- Senator Ron Latz (SD 46, DFL)
What it would have done
- Made it a felony to own or build an unserialized “ghost gun” in Minnesota, and forced current owners to serialize, surrender, or destroy them
- Criminalized the possession, manufacture, and sale of privately manufactured firearms, with some exceptions
- Required that all firearms have serial numbers, with a few exceptions, such as pre-1968 firearms
- Required you to be an FFL to manufacture a firearm with CNC equipment or 3D printing, and criminalized the possession of 3D-printed firearm design files
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill.
Written testimony
SF 4200
SF 4200: binary trigger ban
Chief author
- Senator Heather Gustafson (SD 36, DFL)
What it would have done
- Retroactively reenacted a complete ban on binary triggers to January 1, 2025
- The 2024 binary trigger ban was struck down and permanently enjoined in our Caucus v. Walz case
Read the bill
Where we stood
- We opposed this bill.
What happened
- Passed on a voice vote along party lines (DFL for, GOP against), which made it eligible to be called up on the Senate floor
Written testimony
Committee testimony
- We were not “allowed” to testify against this bill: committee partisan staff told us the “schedule was full.”
Also heard
Other bills
The committee also heard these bills:
- SF 2228: Violent crime enforcement teams appropriation
- SF 2546: High-fidelity wraparound grants establishment; mental health services for incarcerated youth authorization
- SF 3347: Minnesota clearance grant program provision
- SF 3561: Reporting requirement on accidental discharges of firearms by peace officers
- SF 3648: Additional school safety specialists appropriation
- SF 3825: Requirement that loaded firearms be stored in locations where persons prohibited from possessing firearms cannot access the firearms
- SF 3836: Public and extending retention requirements for certain firearm permit data classification
- SF 3837: ERPO public awareness campaign appropriation
- SF 3901: School safety threat assessment pilot project
- SF 3929: Chiefs of Police & Sheriff authorization to open certain expunged records to determine eligibility to purchase, receive, or carry a firearm
Video
Watch the whole committee hearing
Part 1
Part 2
Before the hearing
How members helped
Before the hearing, we asked members to tell their legislators where they stood on these bills in our Action Center, then to call them, and to submit written testimony.
How members submitted written testimony (deadline March 11, 2026, 5:00 PM)
- Send an email to judiciary@senate.mn
- Attach a 1-page document in PDF format
- The file name must first list the organization or individual’s name, the SF number, and a position, i.e., pro, con, or neutral
- Copy contact@gunowners.mn on your submission
After the hearing
What happened next
- SF 4067, the omnibus gun bill, bundled nearly every gun control priority of the session, including a dealer sales ban on most semi-automatic rifles, the binary trigger reenactment, restrictions on home-built firearms, and a $500,000 “violence prevention” research center. It passed the Senate 34-33 on May 4, 2026, and never got a House vote.
- None of these bills became law. What they tried in 2026, and what we expect in 2027.
What’s next
The fight moves to the 2027 session
The 2027 session opens January 12 with a DFL trifecta and larger DFL majorities than in 2023-24. Every bill starts over with a new number in 2027, so expect the ideas on this page to come back under new numbers.
Get action alerts so you know when to call and when to testify, and follow the session on our 2027 page. For more of the record, see the 2025 session.
Minnesota’s gun owners are not backing down.
Join the Caucus and keep us at the Capitol, in court, and in every race that matters.