Colorado Now Requires a Sheriff's Card to Buy a Semiautomatic Rifle

Can you walk into a Colorado gun store today and buy a semiautomatic rifle?

Not anymore. Since August 1, 2026, you first need a card from your county sheriff.

Start with the basics. A semiautomatic gun fires one shot each time you pull the trigger and loads the next round by itself. Many of the most popular rifles and handguns sold in America work this way. The Second Amendment protects the right to keep and bear arms, and the U.S. Supreme Court has said that right belongs to individuals.

People in Colorado who already own these guns can keep them. What SB25-003 changes is buying and selling them.

1. It stops most sales. It is now a crime to make, sell, give, or buy a "specified semiautomatic firearm." That means a semiautomatic rifle or shotgun that uses a detachable magazine (the removable part that holds the ammunition), and a gas-operated semiautomatic handgun with a detachable magazine. A short list of guns is left out: .22 caliber rimfire guns, bolt-action, pump-action, and lever-action guns, guns with a built-in magazine that holds 15 rounds or fewer, some older named models, and antiques.
2. It creates one way to buy. You can still buy one of these guns if you finish a state-approved safety class. That means hunter education plus a basic class of at least four hours, or a longer class of at least twelve hours spread over two days. The class is in person, and you must score 90 percent on the test.
3. It requires a sheriff's card. After the class, you apply to your county sheriff for a "Firearms Safety Course Eligibility Card." You show a government photo ID, turn in a background check from a private company, and pay a fee your sheriff sets. The card lasts five years.
4. It lets the sheriff say no. The sheriff must turn you down if you cannot legally own a gun. The sheriff may also turn you down if the sheriff has "a reasonable belief that documented previous behavior" makes it likely you would be a danger to yourself or others. If you are turned down, you do not get your fee back.
5. It builds a list. The state Division of Parks and Wildlife keeps a database of every cardholder and every person who finishes the class. Instructors must report each student within three business days.
6. It raises penalties. Buying or selling without the card is a misdemeanor, and a felony the second time. The bill also raises the penalty for Colorado's 2013 limit on magazines that hold more than 15 rounds.

Supporters make a fair case. Training is good, and most responsible gun owners train anyway. The sheriff cannot turn someone down on a hunch. A "danger" denial has to rest on documented past behavior, the applicant gets the reasons in writing, and if the applicant goes to court, the sheriff must prove the danger by "clear and convincing evidence," which is a high bar. Most law-abiding people will be able to get the card.

Those are real protections. They still leave a bigger problem in place. In 2008, in District of Columbia v. Heller, the Supreme Court ruled that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to keep a gun for self-defense. In 2022, in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, the Court struck down a New York law that let officials decide who had a good enough reason to carry a gun. Colorado's law puts a similar decision in an official's hands at the point of purchase. A constitutional right now waits on a class schedule, a fee you lose if you are turned down, and a sheriff's judgment about your past.

Look at who the law leaves out. Police agencies do not need the card. Neither do prison staff, armored car companies, the National Guard, gunsmithing schools, museums, crime labs, or movie sets using guns that fire only blanks. Someone settling a relative's estate is also covered. And a Colorado resident may sell one of these guns to a person who lives in another state without a card.

The one person who must earn permission is the Colorado resident buying a gun to protect a Colorado home.

The law includes a promise. It says the state's new database "is not a record that a person purchases or exchanges firearms."

That is true on paper. But the card is the only way an ordinary resident can buy one of these guns. So the list of cardholders is the list of everyone allowed to buy. Think of a party with a guest list, where no one gets in the door unless their name is on it. Saying the list is not a record of who came to the party does not change who came to the party.

The law protects itself from voters in two ways.

First, it says the money from the new card fees does not count toward TABOR. TABOR is Colorado's Taxpayer's Bill of Rights, the part of the state constitution that limits how much money the state can collect without a vote of the people.

Second, it carries a "safety clause." In Colorado, lawmakers can add this clause to say a law is needed right away for public safety. It makes the law take effect immediately, and it blocks citizens from gathering signatures to put the law on the ballot for a public vote.

The law defines the banned guns by their features: a semiautomatic action and a removable magazine. The state will publish guidance on which models count, so the people who write that guidance will decide in practice where the line falls. Colorado went from a magazine limit in 2013 to a sales ban with a permit in 2025. Now that the permit system exists, lawmakers could apply it to other guns by passing one more bill.

The Colorado State Shooting Association and several Coloradans sued Governor Jared Polis in federal court in September 2025, in a case called Del Toro v. Polis. They argue the permit system violates the Second Amendment. In August 2026, after the law took effect, they asked the judge to pause the permit requirement while the case goes forward, and lawyers for the National Rifle Association joined them. As of September 24, 2026, we found no ruling on that request.

Separately, in May 2026, the U.S. Justice Department sued Colorado over its 15-round magazine limit.

The biggest question is now at the U.S. Supreme Court. On June 30, 2026, the Court agreed to hear two cases about bans on AR-style rifles, one from Cook County, Illinois, which includes Chicago, and one from Connecticut. The Court will hear arguments on December 2, 2026. The core question in those cases, whether these rifles are protected by the Second Amendment, is the same question underneath Colorado's law.

SB25-003 passed the Colorado Senate 19-15 and the House 36-28. The Senate then accepted the House's changes 20-14 and passed the final version 19-15. Every lead sponsor was a Democrat: Senators Tom Sullivan and Julie Gonzales and Representatives Andrew Boesenecker and Meg Froelich. Governor Polis signed it April 10, 2025.

The state says its list is not a list of gun buyers. Under SB25-003, it is the list of every Coloradan allowed to become one.

This is our read of the law. We encourage you to read it yourself and reach your own conclusions.