Image by Jason Gillman from Pixabay 

Joins brief to the Ninth Circuit in support of Hawai’i’s firearm background check and permitting requirements 

October 23, 2025 - OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta joined a coalition of 17 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief supporting Hawai’i’s and other States’ authority to enact reasonable firearms regulations to protect their communities from gun violence, and ensure that only law-abiding, responsible citizens are permitted to purchase firearms. The brief was filed in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Yukutake v. Lopez, supporting Hawai’i’s en banc proceedings after a divided Ninth Circuit panel ruled unconstitutional two provisions of Hawai’i’s firearm permitting scheme: its 30-day time limit on purchase permits and its inspection requirement for certain new firearms. In the brief, the attorneys general urge the Ninth Circuit’s en banc panel to reverse the decision striking down these provisions. The brief highlights states’ interests in implementing appropriate, reasonable regulations tailored to their specific circumstances and argues that the provisions at issue are not being put to abusive ends and do not meaningfully constrain Second Amendment rights. 

“No one should be made to live in fear: States have both the responsibility and the authority to protect their communities from the threat of gun violence,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Commonsense gun restrictions help stop dangerous weapons from reaching the hands of those who shouldn’t possess them, while upholding law-abiding gun owners' Second Amendment rights. We will continue to stand up for States’ legal authority to enact laws to maintain public safety, including constitutional gun regulations that respond to local needs and concerns.”

At issue in the case are two provisions of Hawai'i’s “shall-issue” permitting regime: (1) its 30-day limitation on the outcome of its background checks for the purchase of handguns; and (2) its limited inspection requirement for certain firearms. The brief argues that these regulations fall squarely within Hawai’i’s authority to enact reasonable restrictions to ensure that only “law-abiding, responsible citizens” are allowed to purchase, possess, and carry a firearm within its borders, and respond to unique circumstances in their state. For example, the inspection regulation ensures the State can obtain and verify the serial numbers of firearms that are imported from out-of-state, sold by a non-licensed individual, or are unserialized “ghost guns”— information that it would routinely obtain for firearm purchases from in-state, licensed dealers. 

In the brief, the attorneys general argue that States have primary responsibility to protect the health, safety, and welfare of their citizens — including protecting those citizens from the harmful effects of gun violence and promoting the safe and responsible use of firearms. The Second Amendment permits the States to enact a variety of regulations to combat the misuse of firearms and enables solutions that suit local needs and values, as Hawai’i has done here.

It further argues that Hawai'i’s “shall-issue” licensing and regulatory regime are constitutional under the Second Amendment and Bruen, as the challenged provisions only serve to limit firearm purchase and possession to responsible law-abiding people, and are not being put towards abusive ends. For example, the expiration of 30-day purchase permits does not bar or impede the qualified prospective purchaser from obtaining a new permit. In fact, it encourages prompt firearm acquisition and ensures that regulators are not relying on outdated background check information when determining if a purchaser is prohibited by law from possessing firearms. As a result, the coalition asks the en banc panel to hold the challenged provisions as valid exercises of State authority to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its inhabitants.

In filing the brief, Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.

A copy of the brief can be found here.