Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Ban .50 Caliber Rifles

Late last month, three US Representatives introduced a bill that would ban American citizens from building, buying, selling, or owning .50 caliber rifles. The bill's supporters say that it could be a powerful tool in the fight against cartel violence, while detractors say it violates established gun rights.

What is the 2024 .50 Caliber Rifle Ban?

On May 17, 2024, two Representatives from Texas (Joaquin Castro and Veronica Escobar) and one from Florida (Maxwell Frost) introduced a bill to the US House. The bill, dubbed the “Stop Arming Cartels Act of 2024,” seeks to ban Americans from owning, manufacturing, or transferring a rifle “capable of firing .50 caliber ammunition.”

The law makes specific exemptions for agents of a federal or state government.

American civilians who already owned .50 caliber rifles would be able to keep them under a grandfather clause. However, they would have to register them with the ATF within 12 months of the law passing.

The law would also change rules that have nothing to do with .50 caliber rifles. Specifically, the Act would require gun stores to report whenever a buyer purchased multiple rifles, or a combination of multiple rifles and handguns. Current law only requires gun shops to report when a person buys more than one handgun at a time.

Several states have already banned their citizens from owning .50 caliber rifles. Notably, California has had a .50 cal ban on the books since 2004.

The Bottom Line

Representative Castro said that cartels have used .50 caliber rifles to shoot down helicopters flown by the Mexican government. These are the same claims that prospective ATF head nominee David Chipman made about the Waco siege. These claims were proven false.

One thing that I want to make sure I mention is that the worlding of this bill is vague and overbroad. All AR-15 lower receivers chambered in 5.56x45 can also fire .50 Beowulf cartridges with the right upper receiver. As a result, the hazy language of the bill could essentially ban the majority of AR-15 in the country.

I also don’t understand how banning Americans from owning .50 caliber rifles is supposed to stop them from getting into the hands of cartel members. I doubt there are many private citizens selling their .50 caliber rifles – which can cost around $10,000 – to gangsters.

We’ll keep an eye on this story as it develops.