State Legality MatrixBinary TriggersWashington
Statute-cited, not legal advice, last verified 2026-10-20
Banned
No. Falls within Washington's machine-gun definition covering mechanisms not requiring that the trigger be pressed for each shot.
Controlling law: RCW 9.41.010; RCW 9.41.190
Contested entry
RCW 9.41.010 defines a machine gun as any mechanism or instrument not requiring that the trigger be pressed for each shot that has a separable ammunition supply and fires at a rate of five or more shots per second. The release-fired round places a binary trigger within that definition, and RCW 9.41.190 bars possessing machine guns. Note the asymmetry: Washington does NOT ban forced reset triggers, which fire one round per pull.
The statute in practice
Washington's RCW 9.41.010 defines a machine gun to include any mechanism or instrument not requiring that the trigger be pressed for each shot that has a separable ammunition supply and fires at a rate of five or more shots per second. The release-fired round is therefore analyzed under different wording from the federal single-function test; RCW 9.41.190 bars possessing machine guns.
Federal law
Binary triggers are legal under federal law and are not machine guns under 26 U.S.C. § 5845(b); ATF treats the trigger pull and the trigger release as two separate functions of the trigger, so one round is fired per function. Cargill v. Garland (2024) concerned bump stocks, not binary triggers, and does not change this.
Federal baseline verified 2026-10-20. Scope: Binary triggers (Franklin Armory BFSIII and similar): fire one round on trigger pull and one on release. Forced reset triggers are a separate class.
Common questions
No. Falls within Washington's machine-gun definition covering mechanisms not requiring that the trigger be pressed for each shot. Controlling law: RCW 9.41.010; RCW 9.41.190.
The controlling law is RCW 9.41.010; RCW 9.41.190. Falls within Washington's machine-gun definition covering mechanisms not requiring that the trigger be pressed for each shot.