The battle over the Second Amendment in Minnesota escalated dramatically on March 13, 2026, when the state Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee passed SF 3655, a comprehensive ban on semi-automatic rifles and standard capacity magazines. The vote was 6 to 3, with all six Democrats supporting the measure and all three Republicans opposed. The bill now advances to the Senate Finance Committee, bringing Minnesota one step closer to enacting some of the most restrictive gun laws in the nation.
The MN Gun Owners Caucus, the largest gun rights organization in the state, immediately sounded the alarm on social media. In a tweet posted after the vote, the organization announced that the “SEMI-AUTO & MAG BAN PASSES SENATE JUDICIARY” and urged supporters to take action, sign petitions, and donate to fight the bill’s progress. The Caucus also reported that it had been blocked from testifying at the hearing, with committee staff telling them the schedule was “full” even as anti-gun groups were given time slots. The organization bluntly called this “rigging the hearing.”
SEMI-AUTO & MAG BAN PASSES SENATE JUDICIARY
Next stop: Senate Finance6-3
All DFL in support
ALL GOP opposed⚡ TAKE ACTION: https://t.co/SsV2znACl1
📝 SIGN A PETITION: https://t.co/UJSW8hxVDO
✊ JOIN THE FIGHT: https://t.co/4kPIH1TA6r
🛡️ BECOME A 2A DEFENDER:…— MN Gun Owners Caucus (@mnguncaucus) March 13, 2026
SF 3655, authored by Senator Zaynab Mohamed of Minneapolis and introduced last month, targets semi-automatic rifles that accept a detachable magazine and have one or more features such as pistol grips, adjustable stocks, flash suppressors, or threaded barrels. This language effectively covers most modern sporting rifles, including AR-15 style platforms. The bill also bans all magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds.
The bill’s provisions extend far beyond a simple prohibition. Owners who possessed a banned firearm before August 1, 2026, may apply for a state-issued certificate of ownership from the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension by February 1, 2027, at an unknown fee that must be renewed every three years. Perhaps most controversially, law enforcement may inspect a registered owner’s home for safe storage compliance without a warrant. Registered firearms may only be kept at the owner’s home or at a licensed firing range, effectively banning their use for hunting on public land. The firearms cannot be sold, gifted, or even inherited by family members. Violations constitute a felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $25,000 fine.
Gun rights organizations have mounted fierce opposition. The NRA Institute for Legislative Action stated that SF 3655 “bans commonly owned gas-operated semiautomatic firearms and magazines in excess of 10 rounds, directly violating the Second Amendment’s ‘common use’ standard.” The organization also noted it would “become a crime to use any banned firearms for the purpose of hunting in the state.”
The National Shooting Sports Foundation published a detailed analysis calling the legislative push a politically motivated package lacking voter or crime data support. The NSSF stressed that modern sporting rifles, with over 32 million in civilian circulation, clearly meet the commonly possessed for lawful use standard established by the Supreme Court. On the magazine ban, NSSF estimated there are at least 717,900,000 such magazines in consumer hands, calling politicians’ reasonable compromise framing “blindly unsubstantiated at best and grossly misleading at worst.”
The Sportsmen’s Alliance called the bills “a direct assault on the tools and rights sportsmen use to put food on the table and to manage our state’s wildlife.” They highlighted that the use restrictions amount to a de facto hunting ban, since even registered firearms are confined to private property or a licensed range.
The MN Gun Owners Caucus argues the bill violates the Second Amendment’s common use standard established in D.C. v. Heller and reinforced by NYSRPA v. Bruen. The Caucus has announced a 2026 Rally to Defend the Second Amendment at the Minnesota State Capitol Rotunda on April 11, 2026. With the Minnesota House split 67 to 67 under a power-sharing agreement, the bill’s path through the full legislature remains uncertain. But gun owners across the state are preparing for what they see as the most significant threat to their constitutional rights in a generation.
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About José Niño
José Niño is a freelance writer based in Charlotte, North Carolina. You can contact him via Facebook and X/Twitter. Subscribe to his Substack newsletter by visiting “Jose Nino Unfiltered” on Substack.com.
