State Legality Matrix / Assault Weapon Feature Bans / Rhode Island
Statute-cited, last verified 2026-07-10
Yes. Feature-based prohibited-firearm definition; manufacture, sale, purchase, and transfer are banned from July 1, 2026, with existing lawful possession grandfathered. Effective 2026-07-01.
Controlling law: R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 11-47.3 (Assault Weapons Ban Act of 2025, 2025-S 0359A)
Triggering features: folding stock, telescoping stock, pistol grip, flash suppressor, threaded barrel, barrel shroud, forward grip, bayonet mount, grenade launcher.
Signed June 26, 2025; effective July 1, 2026. Bans manufacture, sale, transfer, and purchase of semi-auto rifles, shotguns, and pistols meeting the feature test. Existing lawfully possessed weapons are grandfathered; this is a sale and transfer ban, not a possession ban. Penalty up to 10 years or $10,000.
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. Feature-based prohibited-firearm definition; manufacture, sale, purchase, and transfer are banned from July 1, 2026, with existing lawful possession grandfathered. Effective 2026-07-01. Controlling law: R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 11-47.3 (Assault Weapons Ban Act of 2025, 2025-S 0359A).
The controlling law is R.I. Gen. Laws ch. 11-47.3 (Assault Weapons Ban Act of 2025, 2025-S 0359A). Feature-based prohibited-firearm definition; manufacture, sale, purchase, and transfer are banned from July 1, 2026, with existing lawful possession grandfathered.
Rhode Island's rule took effect 2026-07-01. Signed June 26, 2025; effective July 1, 2026. Bans manufacture, sale, transfer, and purchase of semi-auto rifles, shotguns, and pistols meeting the feature test. Existing lawfully possessed weapons are grandfathered; this is a sale and transfer ban, not a possession ban. Penalty up to 10 years or $10,000.
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