By 2024, a number of new rules will have made it harder to get guns. A report released on Friday shows how each state compares. In its yearly study, Everytown for Gun Safety ranked all 50 states based on the strength and effectiveness of 50 gun control laws and the number of gun deaths they caused.
A group that works to stop gun violence found that California has the strictest gun rules in the country. New York, Illinois, Connecticut, and Hawaii are next, in that order. Mississippi, Idaho, Montana, and Georgia had some of the least strict gun rules. Arkansas, which is placed last, Florida, Nebraska, and North Carolina are some of the states that fell in the rankings after passing laws that made it easier to own guns.
The study says that the lowest gun death rates are in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Hawaii, New Jersey, and New York. The highest gun death rates are in Mississippi, Louisiana, New Mexico, Alabama, and Montana.
Nick Suplina, senior vice president for law and policy at Everytown for Gun Safety, said, “When we look at the rates of gun violence in these states, we see a strong correlation between states with gun laws and lower rates of gun violence. The opposite is true for states with weak laws.”
New gun laws went into effect on January 1 in California, Illinois, Colorado, Washington, and Minnesota, among other states. This report comes after those laws went into force. Late this year, new rules start to take effect in other states, such as Michigan and Oregon.
Here are some gun rules that are in place or will be in place in 2024 in different states:
California Guns Law
A new law in California briefly banned people from carrying guns in more than two dozen public places on January 1. The law is still being challenged in court.
The law, which was signed into law by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom in September, was briefly stopped last month by a federal judge who said it goes against the Supreme Court and the Second Amendment. The previous decision was temporarily put on hold by a federal appeals court, which let the law go into effect on January 1. However, the law was stopped again on Saturday.
Colorado Guns Law
It went from 12th to 11th on Everytown’s list. Colorado joined 11 other states at the beginning of the year in putting limits on “ghost guns,” which are guns that are put together from kits or 3D-printed. The guns, which are also called “privately made firearms,” don’t need to go through background checks and don’t have serial numbers, which can make it harder for police to find them.
Illinois Guns Law
Everytown’s list moved Illinois up from seventh to third place. On January 1, a new rule banned some high-powered semiautomatic weapons and high-capacity magazines. A mass shooting at a Highland Park Fourth of July parade in January 2023 killed seven people and hurt many more. That’s when the ban on assault guns became law.
Also Read: 6 Most Silliest Laws in North Carolina That You Must Need to Know
Michigan Guns Law
Following the shooting at Michigan State University, Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a number of gun safety bills into law. These will become law in 2024. Background checks will be made more thorough, guns will have to be kept away from children, and there will be a new “red flag” rule. In November, Whitmer also signed a bill that briefly stopped people who have been convicted of domestic violence from having guns or buying ammunition. Everytown’s list moved the state up from 24th to 20th.
Washington Guns Law
In Washington, anyone who buys a gun must now go through a background check, wait 10 business days, and then take a safety course within five years.
West Virginia Guns Law
The group Everytown says that in July, people with concealed carry permits will be able to bring guns to public college and university sites in West Virginia, which is ranked 27th.