Keeping New Yorkers Safe: Governor Hochul Announces Nation-Leading Proposals to Crack Down on 3D-Printed Guns and Other Illegal Firearms

Governor’s Plan Confronts 3D-Printed Ghost Guns, Nation’s Fastest Growing Gun Safety Threat

Proposal Establishes Criminal Penalties for Unlicensed Manufacture and Sale of 3D-Printed Firearms and Requires Reporting of All Recovered 3D-Printed Guns

First-in-the-Nation Policy Would Create Minimum Safety Standards for 3D Printer Manufacturers; Blocking Production of 3D-Printed Firearms and Firearm Components

Builds on New York’s Nation-Leading Gun Laws by Requiring Gun Manufacturers To Design Their Pistols To Prevent Easy Modification Into Illegal Machine Guns

As part of her 2026 State of the State agenda, Governor Kathy Hochul today unveiled proposals to strengthen New York’s nation leading gun laws by cracking down on 3D-printed and illegal firearms. The new legislation would establish criminal penalties for the manufacture of 3D-printed firearms and order minimum safety standards to be established for 3D printer manufacturers to block the production of firearms and firearm components. The proposed legislation would also require gun manufacturers to design their pistols so they cannot be quickly and easily modified into illegal machine guns, and require police departments and sheriffs’ offices to report recoveries of all 3D printed guns to the state. These proposals build on Governor Hochul’s historic efforts to get guns off the streets, reduce firearm deaths, and end the scourge of gun violence in New York State — which are delivering dramatic results. In 2025, shootings statewide fell to their lowest levels on record and were down 60 percent from when Governor Hochul took office in 2021.

“Public safety is my top priority. When I took office, I made a promise to New Yorkers to attack the gun violence epidemic head-on, and as gun technology continues to evolve, so do our strongest-in-the-nation gun laws,” Governor Hochul said. “From the iron pipeline to the plastic pipeline, these proposals will keep illegal ghost guns off of New York streets, and enhance measures to track and block the production of dangerous and illegal firearms in our state. I remain committed to continuing the progress we saw in 2025 to reduce gun violence in New York and ensuring our laws remain the strongest and safest in the nation.”

Enhancing New York’s Nation Leading Gun Laws

New legislation proposed to continue the progress New York State has made in cracking down on 3D printed guns and ghost guns would:

• Make it a crime for a person to intentionally sell, distribute, or possess digital instructions to illegally manufacture or produce a firearm or component parts without a license.
• Mandate the reporting of 3D printed guns to the Criminal Gun Clearinghouse database maintained by the New York State Police.
• Create a first-in-the-nation policy that requires the establishment of minimum safety standards for 3D printer manufacturers to ensure their products are equipped with technology that blocks the printer from creating firearms and component parts.
• Require gun manufacturers to design pistols so they cannot be quickly and easily modified into DIY machine guns through the use of illegal devices, such as Glock switches.

Preventing Gun Violence in New York

Since taking office, Governor Hochul has invested $1.27 billion in gun violence prevention initiatives. The FY 2026 Budget included $347 million in funding for these initiatives. Recent program allocations have included:

• $36 million for the Gun Involved Violence Elimination (GIVE) initiative, which currently provides equipment, overtime, and personnel, as well as comprehensive, focused training and technical assistance to 28 police departments outside of New York City and their county law enforcement partners: district attorneys’ offices, probation departments and sheriffs’ offices.
• $20.7 million to support SNUG Street Outreach programs that work to reduce gun violence and save lives across New York State. These grants to community-based organizations and hospitals fund outreach workers, hospital responders, social workers and case managers who are credible messengers and work with individuals at risk of gun violence, connecting them with support and services to change behavior and increase opportunities.
• $20 million to support programs and services that strengthen violence prevention, youth development, mental health supports, and economic opportunity for young people in 10 communities statewide through Project RISE (Respond, Invest, Sustain, Empower).
• $40.6 million for the Youth Employment Program, which aims to help reduce community gun violence and youth criminal justice involvement by providing year-round employment and training opportunities to at-risk youth in parts of the state, outside of New York City, most impacted by gun violence.
• $127 million for law enforcement technology grants to modernize law enforcement technology and equipment and help local law enforcement agencies prevent and solve crimes, particularly violent crimes by firearms and crimes of community concern.

During the first 11 months of last year, communities participating in GIVE reported 477 shooting incidents with injury, the fewest reported since the state began tracking this data. This represents a 60 percent decline in shooting incidents with injury as compared to the same time in 2021, and a 15 percent reduction compared to 2024.