Sponsors (4)
The bill reduces the risk of prosecuting visitors for otherwise-permitted conduct on federal lands but does so at the cost of potentially increasing public-safety risks and enforcement complexity for officials.
Visitors to federal lands (including national parks, wildlife refuges, BLM sites, TVA lands) would no longer risk criminal penalties under §930 for otherwise-permitted conduct while in areas open to visitors, reducing chances that everyday people are prosecuted for carrying items they believe are allowed.
Visitors and federal staff could face increased public-safety risks because the carve-out may reduce or eliminate criminal liability for possessing firearms or other covered items in visitor-accessible areas of federal sites.
Local law enforcement and federal staff would have to apply a new area-based exception, creating enforcement complexity, added administrative burden, and potential for legal disputes over when the exception applies.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Adds visitor-accessible units and facilities of specified federal land agencies to the statute's list of "exempted areas," allowing lawful possession/carry there under 18 U.S.C. § 930.
Official title: To authorize possession of a firearm in certain units and facilities of the Federal Government, and for other purposes.
Introduced July 16, 2026 by Rudy Yakym · Last progress July 16, 2026
Allows people who may lawfully possess firearms under federal law to carry on many kinds of federal lands and facilities by adding those visitor-accessible units to the statute's list of exempted areas. The bill amends the federal criminal statute that limits firearms in federal facilities to make Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, National Forest, NOAA, National Park, National Wildlife Refuge, TVA, and Army Corps units that are open to visitors "exempted areas."