Bill Tracker · CalGunHub
SB-452: Microstamping: standalone certification regime
Signed into law. See the bill page for its effective date.
SB 452 removed the dual-place microstamping criterion from the Unsafe Handgun Act definition and created a standalone regime. DOJ published performance standards, began accepting microstamping-producer license applications January 1, 2026, and must determine by July 1, 2027 whether microstamping components or enabled firearms are available. Commencing January 1, 2028, and only if availability is determined, dealers may not sell or transfer a semiautomatic pistol unless it is certified microstamping-enabled; private-party transfers and pistols delivered to a dealer before that date are exempt. The bill also recodified the roster three-for-one removal rule.
Status: Signed · No dated action on record
Last recorded action
Chaptered — Stats. 2023, ch. 253
Counsel review pending · Informational only, not legal advice
How this affects Californians
Draft explainer
Buyers · Dealers (FFLs) · Manufacturers
Sets up a standalone microstamping regime. From January 1, 2028, if DOJ determines the technology is available, licensed dealers may not sell a semiautomatic pistol unless it is verified as microstamping enabled. Also removes microstamping from the unsafe handgun definition itself.
Right now: Signed into law. See the bill page for its effective date.
Informational only, not legal advice. Grounded in the bill's official digest.
Recorded actions
- : Milestone. Conditional dealer-sale restriction commences if availability is determined
- : Milestone. DOJ deadline to determine microstamping component and firearm availability
- : Milestone. DOJ begins accepting microstamping-producer license applications
- : Milestone. DOJ microstamping performance standards published
Sources
Verify status against the official record.