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Mass. gets an ‘A’ in gun safety for first time from Giffords Center
For years, the Bay State was given an ‘A-’ on the annual scorecard from the gun safety organization.
Massachusetts has long been recognized for having strong gun laws, and on Tuesday, the state for the first time earned an “A” rating from the Giffords Law Center, a gun violence prevention organization.
Each year, the organization releases a scorecard grading and ranking each state on its gun laws, compared alongside data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on firearm deaths.
“Massachusetts has some of the strongest gun laws in the country and leads the nation in investing in community violence intervention strategies,” the organization wrote.
The state was ranked fifth out of 50 for the strength of its gun laws, according to the Gifford Center. It was also the state with the lowest gun death rate, 3.7 per 100,000.
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For years, Massachusetts was given an “A-” in the rankings. According to the Giffords Center, there were several changes from last year that resulted in the state’s changed grade, including the banning of ghost guns, the prohibition of guns at polling places and government buildings, the strengthening of the state’s existing extreme risk protection order law, and the investment of $48 million in community violence intervention programs.
The bulk of those changes were in the sweeping gun safety legislation that Gov. Maura Healey signed earlier this year following its approval by the Legislature. Opponents of the new law say they are looking to challenge the mandates with a ballot question before voters in 2026.
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Even with the changes made in 2024, the Gifford Center indicated in its scorecard for Massachusetts that more can still be done to improve gun safety in the state, namely by passing gun industry accountability legislation, limiting the bulk sales of firearms, minimum age restrictions, and banning guns in bars.
“In 2022, Massachusetts had the second lowest gun death rate among the states,” the organization wrote. “In an average year, 257 people die from gun violence in the state. That means someone dies from gun violence every 34 hours. Fifty-five percent of those deaths are gun suicides, and 42% are gun homicides.”
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