Fact vs. Fiction on Rhode Island’s Assault Weapons Ban Legislation (H 5436/SB 359) 

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Yesterday, the Rhode Island House held a hearing on H 5436, a lifesaving piece of legislation to ban assault weapons in Rhode Island. The legislation would ban the manufacture and sale of assault weapons in the state to help prevent future mass shootings. Lawmakers cannot afford to wait for another tragedy to take action. 

During the hearing, opponents of the bill attempted to spread misinformation about the legislation, claiming that it is a threat to the economic and physical health of Rhode Islanders, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Here are the facts of what H 5436 would – and would not – do.   

FACT: Assault weapons are a class of especially lethal firearms that have military-style features and are the most common weapons used in the deadliest mass shootings, including at least nine out of the 10 mass shooting incidents with the most casualties between 2015 and 2022. 

FACT: The majority of Rhode Islanders support an assault weapons ban. In a poll conducted by the AFL-CIO earlier this year, the majority (64%) of Rhode Island voters support a prohibition on assault weapons.

FICTION: The gun industry in Rhode Island will suffer hundreds of millions of dollars in economic losses as a result of H 5436. 

• FACT: Ten states and Washington, D.C., including the neighboring states of New York, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, already have assault weapons bans on the books, and gun dealers in those states have been able to sell compliant firearms in place of assault weapons.

FICTION: H 5436 would prevent Rhode Islanders from selling or buying hunting shotguns and rifles.

• FACT: H 5436 is specifically designed to target weapons of war. It does not impact any of the firearms that responsible gun owners commonly use for hunting, including manually operated pump-action and double-barreled shotguns as well as bolt-action rifles. Further, the bill does not touch semi-automatic shotguns and rifles that lack military-style features. During the hearing on H 5436, opponents claimed that many shotguns would be banned because they have threaded barrels, but threaded barrels are not prohibited for semi-automatic shotguns under this bill.

FICTION: H 5436 would make it harder for Rhode Islanders to defend themselves.

• FACT: The bill does not affect weapons that are commonly owned and used for self-defense. Not only would Rhode Islanders be allowed to keep the weapons they currently own, but the bill would not prohibit the future sale of any revolvers, most pistols, all manually operated firearms, or semi-automatic rifles and shotguns that do not possess certain military-style features that make assault weapons easier to shoot quickly and accurately in combat — making them that more dangerous in the wrong hands.

FICTION: H 5436 would put Rhode Islanders in more danger by preventing a ‘good guy with a gun’ from stopping a mass shooting. 

• FACT: Research shows that the idea of a ‘good guy with a gun’ is nothing but a myth. A study from the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center found that less than 1% of more than 3,000 gun owners surveyed across the country have used their firearm for self-defense within the last year – with 92 percent having never used a firearm to protect themselves at all.

FICTION: This bill will make current owners of assault weapons criminals and require them to give up their assault weapons. 

• FACT: This bill has no immediate impact on a current owner’s possession of their assault weapon. Anyone who currently owns an assault weapon can continue to possess it legally, even after a ban would take effect.

FICTION: Rhode Island has the second-strongest gun safety laws in the country. 

• FACT: According to the Everytown for Gun Safety Gun Law Rankings, Rhode Island ranks 13th in the country for the strength of its gun safety laws. That means it is not a national leader on gun safety, and lawmakers still need to enact measures like an assault weapons ban to keep their communities safe. 
  

Gun violence costs Rhode Island $752.1 million each year, of which $15.8 million is paid by taxpayers. More information about gun violence in Rhode Island is available here.