Firearm Licensing Review Board:
Section 130B

The Firearm Licensing Review Board under MGL Chapter 140, Section 130B^[1] provides a narrow restoration path for certain Massachusetts conviction-based disqualifiers. It is not a general administrative appeal from a licensing authority's decision.

Who May Petition

An FID or LTC applicant may petition only when the disqualifying conviction or juvenile adjudication was for an offense punishable by 2.5 years or less when committed under the laws of the Commonwealth, was not an excluded domestic-violence assault or battery, and the statutory five-year waiting period has passed. The Board must also find that the qualifying conviction is the petitioner's sole disqualifier.

Five-Year Waiting Period

The five years run from the latest of conviction, adjudication, or release from confinement, commitment, probation, or parole supervision. The petition must include a completed FID or LTC application previously or contemporaneously submitted to the licensing authority.

Board Decision

The petitioner bears the burden to prove suitability by clear and convincing evidence. Restoration requires a two-thirds Board vote. The Board must decide a petition within 60 days after receipt and communicate its decision and findings in writing.

Direct Judicial Review

A direct challenge to a license denial, suspension, or revocation follows the district-court process in Section 121F(v), generally within 90 days. That judicial route and a Section 130B conviction-restoration petition address different legal questions. A person should not assume that the Board may review unsuitability or other non-conviction grounds.

Practical Considerations

• Identify every state and federal disqualifier before selecting a review path.
• Keep the written licensing decision and the complete application record.
• Confirm the five-year calculation from the latest listed event.
• Seek Massachusetts firearms counsel for case-specific advice.

Board Composition

The Board consists of seven members:

• A DCJIS member (serving as chair)
• Secretary of Public Safety or designee
• Colonel of State Police or designee
• One member appointed by the Massachusetts Chiefs of Police Association
• The Attorney General or designee
• An attorney with firearms licensing litigation experience (appointed by the Governor from a Massachusetts Bar Association list)
• A retired judge (appointed by the Governor)

Members serve without compensation but receive subsistence and travel allowances.

Hearings and Funding

Hearings are held not less than once every 90 days. Written decisions must be communicated within 20 days.

Section 130B does not specify a fixed funding amount or appropriation for the Board. It directs the Board to set a reasonable filing fee for petitions. Separately, Section 121F(o)(i) allocates not less than $50,000 of the license-fee money deposited into the General Fund to the Board for its operations, with any funds the Board does not expend reverting to the General Fund.