New York proposes background checks for 3D printer purchases — the bill combats 3D-printed guns

New York State Senator Jennifer Rajkumar sponsored State Assembly Bill A02228, which requires anyone selling a 3D printer capable of “printing a firearm or any components of a firearm” to “request and receive criminal history information.” According to Gizmodo, this gives New York State 15 days to conduct the background check and determine whether the buyer can buy the printer. The senator proposed this law on January 15, which is still being considered at the committee level.

Senator Rajkumar introduced the bill to control the proliferation of homemade 3D-printed handguns. One profile example is the Luigi Mangione case, where it’s thought that he used a 3D-printed Glock-style gun during his assassination of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

“Three-dimensional printed guns are growing more prevalent each year. There were 100 taken off the streets of New York City in 2019. That number skyrocketed to 637 in 2022. Concurrently, ghost gun shootings have risen 1,000% across the nation,” Senator Rajkumar previously wrote in a 2023 memo. “Currently, three-dimensional printers allow people to make, buy, sell, and use untraceable guns without any background checks. This bill will require a background check so that three-dimensional printed firearms do not get in the wrong hands.”

This isn’t the first time the senator attempted to pass a law requiring background checks to purchase 3D printers. She proposed something similar in 2023, but the bill didn’t advance beyond the committee level.

Currently, the bill is open for public comment on the New York State Legislature website, and we’re seeing some pushback on the proposed law. “I strongly oppose the proposed legislation requiring background checks for the purchase of 3D printers,” said one comment. “While I understand the intention to address concerns about the misuse of 3D printing technology, this measure raises significant issues related to overreach, effectiveness, and unintended consequences.”

However, despite seemingly easy, 3D printing a complete firearm at home is still pretty tricky. Most 3D-printed gun hybrids contain both 3D-printed and metal parts. While it’s technically possible to 3D print metal, purchasing metal parts and combining them with 3D-printed parts is often cheaper.

There are easier and cheaper ways to purchase guns, registered or not, aside from 3D printing them (which requires hardware, filament, and the know-how) if you want one for personal protection, at least in the U.S. This law is likely intended to prevent or deter would-be gun makers from operating outside the law. But one question remains: Will it be effective at reducing gun violence, or will it just be an annoyance to 3D printing hobbyists?