MGL Chapter 140, Section 131L:
Firearms Storage Requirements

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 140, Section 131L^[1] establishes mandatory storage requirements for covered firearms in the Commonwealth. Massachusetts has some of the most stringent safe storage laws in the nation.

Storage Standard

Subject to its express exceptions, Section 131L requires covered firearms to be stored or kept in a locked container or secured by an engaged tamper-resistant lock or safety device when they are outside the control of the owner or another lawfully authorized person. Subsection (f) excludes the specified antique firearms and replicas.

Penalty Tiers

Section 131L uses different penalties based on the type of firearm and, for the minor-access tiers, whether the firearm was stored or kept where a person under 18 may have access under the conditions stated in the statute:

• Base violation (not a large capacity firearm or machine gun): a fine of $1,000 to $7,500, or imprisonment for up to 1.5 years, or both.
• Large capacity firearm, semiautomatic, or machine gun: a fine of $2,000 to $15,000, or imprisonment for 1.5 to 12 years, or both.
• Possible access by a person under 18 without a valid FID: for a firearm other than a large-capacity firearm or machine gun, when the person may have access without committing an unforeseeable trespass, a fine of $2,500 to $15,000, imprisonment for 1.5 to 12 years, or both.
• Possible access by a person under 18: for a large-capacity rifle or shotgun, firearm, or machine gun, when the person may have access without committing an unforeseeable trespass, a fine of $10,000 to $20,000, imprisonment for 4 to 15 years, or both.

Related Safety-Device Rules

Section 131L is satisfied by a locked container or by an engaged tamper-resistant mechanical lock or other safety device that renders the firearm inoperable by anyone other than the owner or a lawfully authorized user. Section 131K separately treats a firearm sold without a commercially available safety device approved by the Colonel of State Police as defective and creates warranty, consumer-protection, and civil-liability consequences. Federal law separately requires a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer to provide a secure gun storage or safety device when transferring a handgun, subject to the exceptions in 18 U.S.C. Section 922(z).

Exceptions

The storage requirement does not apply while the firearm is carried by or under the control of the owner or another lawfully authorized user. When no statutory exception applies and a firearm is stored or kept, including within the home, it must satisfy the locking standard.

Section 131L also does not apply to firearms with matchlock, flintlock, percussion cap, or similar ignition systems manufactured in or prior to 1899, or to replicas of them that are not designed or redesigned for rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition.