Newly sworn-in Virginia Democrats wasted no time in targeting the Second Amendment with a sweeping slate of gun-control proposals for 2026.
According to Breitbart News, Democrats in Richmond have already moved to saddle law-abiding gun owners with new financial and regulatory burdens, beginning with a $500 tax on suppressor sales and an assault weapons ban introduced on January 10, 2026. By January 15, 2026, the NRA-ILA reported that Democrats had unveiled HB 919, legislation that creates an across-the-board, 11 percent excise tax on the sale of firearms and ammunition, effectively punishing citizens for exercising a constitutional right.
The legislative onslaught does not stop there, as Democrats push a series of bills that collectively tighten nearly every aspect of lawful gun ownership in the Commonwealth. HB 916 was also introduced, [expanding] the curriculum requirements for Virginia concealed carry permit classes, while HB 901 broadens the states red flag law, a mechanism conservatives warn is ripe for abuse and due-process violations.
Further measures include HB 700, which would impose a mandatory five-day waiting period on all gun purchases, delaying access to firearms even for those facing immediate threats to their safety. HB 871 adds onerous storage mandates, requiring that a firearm and the ammunition for such firearm in a locked container, compartment, or cabinet that is inaccessible to any minor or prohibited person present in the home, a one-size-fits-all rule that disregards individual circumstances and self-defense needs.
Virginia Democrats appear to be following a familiar playbook, zeroing in on the Second Amendment in much the same way that Colorado Democrats did in 2013. Since that year, Coloradans exercise of Second Amendment has been incrementally restricted year after year, with an expanding web of controls that now includes an excise tax on gun and ammunition sales, an assault weapons ban, a ban on magazine capacity size, a red flag law, a three-day waiting period on gun sales, and universal background checks, among other measures.
For conservatives, Virginias rapid shift toward Colorado-style gun control raises pressing questions about how far Democrats intend to go in curbing a fundamental constitutional liberty. As lawmakers press ahead with taxes, waiting periods, storage mandates, and expanded red flag provisions, gun-rights advocates warn that these incremental steps are part of a broader strategy to regulate the Second Amendment out of practical existence, even as voices like AWR Hawkins of Breitbart News continue to spotlight and challenge these efforts.
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