S 2611Violent Crime Penalties

Health and Safety - The Rhode Island Firearm Industry Accountability Act of 2026

This bill allows the state and victims to sue gun makers and sellers who fail to prevent illegal gun sales.

Held for study

Population
Affected

Introduced Feb 13, 2026Committee Senate Judiciary

Plain-English Summary

This legislation creates the "Rhode Island Firearm Industry Accountability Act of 2026." It requires companies that manufacture, distribute, or sell firearms to implement "reasonable controls" to prevent their products from being sold to illegal buyers, such as straw purchasers or traffickers. It also prohibits marketing that promotes unlawful firearm use. If these companies fail to comply and harm results, the bill allows victims, the Attorney General, or municipalities to sue them in civil court for damages and penalties up to $10,000 per violation.

For younger readers

This law creates new rules for companies that make or sell guns. It says these companies must be very careful to make sure they do not sell guns to people who are not allowed to have them, such as "straw purchasers" (people who buy a gun for someone else who isn't allowed to buy one). It also says they cannot make ads that encourage breaking the law. If these companies do not follow the rules and someone gets hurt, the companies can get in trouble, have to pay money, or lose their permission to sell guns.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups

Firearm manufacturersGun shop ownersShooting victimsAttorney GeneralMunicipalities

Impacted communities

All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

High. This bill attempts to bypass the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), likely triggering a Supremacy Clause challenge. Additionally, the restrictions on advertising and marketing ("promotes risk to public safety") may be challenged as a violation of the First Amendment regarding commercial speech, as seen in similar cases where vague restrictions on speech were struck down.

Estimated cost

None

Estimated revenue

Amount unknown

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints

For Progressives

Empowers victims of gun violence and communities to hold powerful firearm corporations financially accountable for negligent business practices that contribute to crime.
Incentivizes the firearm industry to proactively implement safety measures and monitor their supply chains to prevent weapons from reaching traffickers and criminals.
Provides a legal pathway to challenge marketing tactics that may glorify violence or encourage unlawful paramilitary activity, prioritizing public safety over corporate profit.
Relies heavily on the civil court system, which can be slow and expensive, potentially delaying justice for victims without immediate financial resources.
May face significant legal challenges due to federal laws protecting gun manufacturers, potentially resulting in years of litigation before any real accountability is achieved.
Does not directly ban specific types of firearms or reduce the overall number of weapons in circulation, which some advocates believe is necessary to truly curb violence.

For Conservatives

Explicitly targets "straw purchasers" and "firearm traffickers," focusing enforcement on criminal elements and those who facilitate illegal acts rather than law-abiding owners.
Reinforces the concept that businesses should follow existing state and federal laws regarding sales and distribution, ensuring a level playing field for compliant dealers.
Maintains a judicial process where the plaintiff must prove that the industry member's specific actions created a foreseeable risk, preserving some elements of due process.
Uses vague terms like "reasonable controls" and "foreseeable risk" to open the door for frivolous lawsuits designed to bankrupt legitimate firearm businesses through litigation costs.
Infringes upon free market principles and First Amendment rights by regulating how private companies can market their legal products to consumers.
Attempts to bypass federal protections for the firearm industry (PLCAA), representing an overreach of state government against a federally regulated industry and the Second Amendment.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 90 additions

SECTION 1. Title 23 of the General Laws entitled "HEALTH AND SAFETY" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 23-106-1. Definitions. As used in this chapter:

(1) “Firearm accessory” means an attachment or device designed or adapted to be inserted into, affixed onto, or used in conjunction with a firearm that is designed, intended, or functions to alter or enhance the firing capabilities of a firearm, the lethality of the firearm, or a shooter's ability to hold and use a firearm.

(2) "Firearm industry member" means a person, firm, corporation, company, partnership, society, joint stock company, trade association, or any other entity or association engaged in the manufacture, distribution, importation, marketing, wholesale or retail sale of firearm industry products.

(3) "Firearm industry product" means any of the following which are or were:

(i) Sold, made or distributed in this state;

(ii) Intended to be sold or distributed in this state; or

(iii) Possessed in this state, and it was reasonably foreseeable that such product would be possessed in this state:

(A) Ammunition, as defined in § 11-47-64;

(B) A detachable magazine, as defined in § 11-47.2-1;

(D) A firearm component;

(E) A firearm accessory;

(F) A bump-fire device, binary trigger, trigger crank, as those terms are defined in § 11- 47-2; or

(G) Any other device that when attached to a semi-automatic weapon allows full-automatic fire including, but not limited to, those devices prohibited pursuant to § 11-47-8.

(4) "Firearm trafficker" means an individual who engages in, conspires to engage in, or attempts to engage in conduct that constitutes trafficking in firearms as described in 18 USC § 933.

(5) "Reasonable controls" means procedures, acts and practices that are designed, implemented and enforced to do all of the following:

(i) Prevent the sale or distribution of a firearm industry product to a straw purchaser, a firearm trafficker, a person prohibited from possessing a firearm under state or federal law, or a person about whom there is reasonable cause to believe such person is at substantial risk of using a firearm industry product to harm themself or another or of possessing or using a firearm industry product unlawfully;

(ii) Ensure that a firearm industry member complies with the provisions of: §§ 11-47-35, 11-47-35.2, 11-47-37, 11-47-38, 11-47-39, 11-47-48.1, and 11-47-64;

(iii) Prevent the sale or distribution of a firearm industry product designed, sold, advertised, marketed or promoted in a manner that foreseeably promotes conversion of a legal firearm industry product into an illegal firearm industry product; and

(iv) Ensures that the firearm industry member complies with the provisions of § 23-106-2 and all other applicable provisions of state and federal law, and does not otherwise advertise, market or promote the unlawful manufacture, sale, possession, marketing or use of a firearm industry product.

(6) "Straw purchaser" means an individual who engages in or attempts to engage in conduct that violates the provisions of § 11-47-23 or 18 USC § 932. 23-106-2. Controls, possession, and advertisements of firearm industry products.

(a) A firearm industry member shall establish, implement and enforce reasonable controls to ensure compliance with the provisions of this chapter.

(b) No firearm industry member shall provide a firearm industry product to another firearm industry member when there is reasonable cause to believe that such other firearm industry member is engaged in conduct that is in violation of this chapter.

(c) No firearm industry member shall advertise, market or promote firearm industry products in this state in a manner that promotes unlawful sales, unlawful use or use that promotes risk to public safety. 23-106-3. Penalties and violations.

(a) An act or omission by a firearm industry member that fails to comply with any provision of § 23-106-2 constitutes a violation of said section and shall be actionable under this section.

(b) A civil action in a court of competent jurisdiction to enforce this section or remedy harm caused by a violation of § 23-106-2 may be brought by:

(1) A person who has suffered harm in this state because of a firearm industry member's violation of § 23-106-2;

(2) The corporation counsel or other chief legal officer of a municipality in the name of the municipality; or

(3) The attorney general, in the name and on behalf of the state.

(c) Any person bringing an action pursuant to this chapter shall provide notice of such action to the attorney general not later than thirty (30) days after the date of filing such action.

(d) In an action alleging that a firearm industry member failed to establish, implement and enforce reasonable controls in violation of the provisions of § 23-106-2, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that the firearm industry member failed to implement reasonable controls if:

(1) The firearm industry member's act or omission created or increased a reasonably foreseeable risk of the harm alleged occurring; and

(2) The firearm industry member could have established, implemented and enforced reasonable controls to prevent or lower the risk of the harm that allegedly occurred, but failed to do so.

(e) If a court determines that a firearm industry member has violated any provision of § 23- 106-2, the firearm industry member shall forfeit and pay to the state a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per violation.

(f) If a court determines that a firearm industry member has violated any provision of § 23- 106-2, the court may award any or all of the following:

(1) Injunctive relief sufficient to prevent the firearm industry member and any other defendant from further violating the law;

(2) Compensatory damages;

(3) Punitive damages;

(4) Restitution; and

(5) Any other appropriate relief necessary to enforce the provisions referenced in this chapter to remedy the harm caused by the conduct.

(g) In addition to the relief permitted under subsection (f) of this section, if a court determines that a firearm industry member has violated any provision of § 23-106-2:

(1) The court shall award costs and attorneys’ fees to a prevailing plaintiff; and

(2) The court may suspend or revoke any permits issued to the firearm industry member under § 11-47-39.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on October 1, 2026, and shall be applicable to any civil action filed on or after October 1, 2026.