State Legality Matrix / Assault Weapon Feature Bans / Maryland
Statute-cited, last verified 2026-07-10
Yes. Named list plus a copycat feature test; sale, transfer, and new possession are banned, with pre-October-2013 possession grandfathered. Effective 2013-10-01.
Controlling law: Md. Code, Crim. Law §§ 4-301 to 4-306 (Firearm Safety Act of 2013)
Triggering features: folding stock, telescoping stock, pistol grip, flash suppressor, grenade launcher, threaded barrel, barrel shroud, forward grip.
Bans enumerated assault long guns and copycat weapons (a centerfire semi-auto rifle with two or more listed features, or over-10-round fixed capacity). Grandfathered if lawfully possessed before October 1, 2013. Upheld en banc in the Fourth Circuit (Bianchi/Snope); the Supreme Court denied cert in 2025.
There has been no federal assault weapons ban since the 1994 ban expired in 2004; no feature restrictions apply federally to semi-automatic rifles or pistols. The 2023 ATF pistol-brace rule was vacated by the Fifth Circuit and is not enforced, so braced pistols are not SBRs under federal law. Cargill v. Garland (2024) made bump stocks federally legal. Feature bans are entirely a matter of state law.
Scope: State laws restricting semi-automatic rifles, pistols, and shotguns by configuration features: threaded barrels, pistol grips, folding or telescoping stocks, flash suppressors, forward grips, and similar. Magazine capacity limits are tracked as a separate class.
Yes. Named list plus a copycat feature test; sale, transfer, and new possession are banned, with pre-October-2013 possession grandfathered. Effective 2013-10-01. Controlling law: Md. Code, Crim. Law §§ 4-301 to 4-306 (Firearm Safety Act of 2013).
The controlling law is Md. Code, Crim. Law §§ 4-301 to 4-306 (Firearm Safety Act of 2013). Named list plus a copycat feature test; sale, transfer, and new possession are banned, with pre-October-2013 possession grandfathered.
Maryland's rule took effect 2013-10-01. Bans enumerated assault long guns and copycat weapons (a centerfire semi-auto rifle with two or more listed features, or over-10-round fixed capacity). Grandfathered if lawfully possessed before October 1, 2013. Upheld en banc in the Fourth Circuit (Bianchi/Snope); the Supreme Court denied cert in 2025.
There has been no federal assault weapons ban since the 1994 ban expired in 2004; no feature restrictions apply federally to semi-automatic rifles or pistols. The 2023 ATF pistol-brace rule was vacated by the Fifth Circuit and is not enforced, so braced pistols are not SBRs under federal law. Cargill v. Garland (2024) made bump stocks federally legal. Feature bans are entirely a matter of state law.
In a feature-ban state, swapping the pistol grip for a featureless grip is the cheapest path to a compliant rifle that keeps its detachable magazine. These grips are purpose-built for that test.
Wider fin-style featureless grip with a fuller palm shelf for shooters who want more support than the Simple grip.
Fin-style featureless grip that replaces the protruding pistol grip on a feature-restricted AR-15 build.
Billet aluminum featureless grip for California AR-15 builds that keeps a standard magazine release.
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Full picks and fitment notes: Featureless AR Build Guide