Code of Massachusetts Regulations
940 CMR - OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
Title 940 CMR 16.00 - Handgun Sales
Section 16.01 - Definitions

Universal Citation: 940 MA Code of Regs 940.16

Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024

For purposes of 940 CMR 16.00, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

Average group diameter test result: shall mean the arithmetic mean of three separate group diameter test results taken from a set distance.

Combination handle lock: shall mean a device which precludes the use of the handgun unless the combination tumblers are properly aligned. This device may, for example, have the numbers for the combination tumblers protrude from the handle of the handgun.

Educational collector: shall mean an individual who is properly licensed as a bonafide collector pursuant to 520 CMR 7.00, and whose collection is maintained for purposes of display, research, lecturing, demonstration, or historical significance, as opposed to being maintained for personal enjoyment and/or possible future profit.

Group diameter test result: shall mean the largest spread in inches between the centers of any of the holes made in a test target after firing five rounds from the handgun in question at the target from a set distance. The ammunition used shall be the type recommended by the handgun manufacturer in its user manual, or if none is recommended, any standard ammunition of the correct caliber in new condition.

Hammer deactivation device: shall mean a built-in device (or an extension of the hammer) which allows a user manually to lower the handgun's hammer into a deactivated position, and which must be manually re-toggled in order to re-cock the hammer before the handgun can be fired.

Handgun: shall mean a weapon, designed to be fired by the use of a single hand, from which may be fired or ejected one or more solid projectiles propelled via a chemical ignition, and which has:

(a) a smooth bore with a barrel less than 18 inches long;

(b) a smooth bore and an overall weapon length of less than 26 inches; or

(c) a rifled bore with a barrel less than 16 inches.

Handgun Drop Test: shall mean a test in which the handgun in question shall be:

(a) test loaded;

(b) set such that the handgun is ready to fire; and

(c) dropped onto a solid slab of concrete from a height of one meter from each of the following positions:
1. normal firing position,

2. upside down,

3. on grip,

4. on the muzzle,

5. on either side, and

6. on the exposed hammer or striker (or if there is no exposed hammer or striker, then the rearmost part of the firearm).

In addition, if the handgun is designed so that its hammer or striker may be set in other positions, the handgun in question shall be tested with the hammer or striker in each such position (but otherwise ready to fire). Alternatively, the tester may use different handguns of the same make and model, in similar condition, for the test of each of these hammer/striker settings.

Handgun Performance Test: shall mean a test in which the handgun in question shall fire 600 rounds, stopping every 100 rounds to tighten any loose screws and to clean the gun (if required by the cleaning schedule in the user manual), and as needed to refill the empty magazine or cylinder to capacity before continuing. For any handgun that loads other than via a detachable magazine, the tester shall also pause every 50 rounds for ten minutes. The ammunition used shall be the type recommended by the handgun manufacturer in its user manual, or if none is recommended, any standard ammunition of the correct caliber in new condition. A handgun shall pass this test if it:

(a) fires the first 20 rounds without a malfunction, and

(b) fires the full 600 rounds with no more than six malfunctions and without any crack or breakage of an operating part of the handgun which increases the danger of injury to the user.

Handgun-purveyor: shall mean any person or entity that transfers handguns to a customer located within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. However, handgun-purveyor shall not include any of the aforementioned if:

(a) the person or entity transfers less than five handguns per year,

(b) the transfer in question is for the purpose of, and does, directly or indirectly, supply law enforcement officials or United States military personnel with handguns for their official duties,

(c) the transfer in question is for the purpose of, and does, directly or indirectly, supply museums or educational collectors with the handguns in question,

(d) the transfer in question is undertaken to, and does, result in the surrender of handguns to military or law enforcement personnel,

(e) the transfer in question is of handguns that qualify as antique firearms as defined in 18 U.S.C. § 921, or

(f) the transfer in question is of handguns that are solely designed and sold specifically for formal target shooting competition.

Key activated trigger lock: shall mean a device that when locked in place by means of a key, prevents a potential user from pulling the trigger of the handgun without first removing the trigger lock by use of the trigger lock's key.

Load indicator: shall mean a device which plainly indicates that a cartridge is in the firing chamber within the handgun.

Magazine safety disconnect: shall mean a device that prevents the firing of the handgun when the magazine is detached from the handgun.

Make and model: shall mean any group of handguns, all of which are made by a manufacturer by the same method and according to the same design pattern and specifications.

Make and Model Performance Requirements: shall mean a test in which three handguns in new condition of the make and model being tested shall each pass the Handgun Performance Test.

Make and Model's Average Group Diameter Test Result: shall mean the arithmetic mean of the results of three Average Group Diameter Tests, each performed on a different handgun in new condition of the make and model being tested.

Malfunction: shall mean any failure to feed, chamber, fire, extract, or eject a round, or any failure to accept or eject a magazine, or any other failure which prevents the handgun, without manual intervention beyond that needed for routine firing and periodic reloading, from firing the chambered round or moving a new round into position so that the handgun is capable of firing the new round properly. Malfunction shall not include a misfire caused by a faulty cartridge whose primer fails to detonate when properly hit by the handgun's firing mechanism.

Passive use-limitation device: shall mean a device that automatically resets itself so that an unauthorized user cannot fire the handgun. As an example, a key activated trigger lock is not a passive use-limitation device because it needs to be re-locked manually after its key is used to unlock it; thus the next user can fire the handgun without having to unlock the handgun.

Prone to accidental discharge: shall mean unable to pass the following test: five handguns in new condition of the make and model in question shall each be subjected to, and none shall discharge during, the Handgun Drop Test.

Ready to fire: shall mean loaded, and in a condition such that pulling the trigger (and taking any action that must simultaneously accompany the pulling of the trigger as part of the firing procedure) will fire the handgun.

Serial number: shall mean the number stamped, inscribed, or placed upon a handgun by a handgun-purveyor pursuant to M.G.L. c. 269, § 11E.

Solenoid use-limitation device: shall mean a device which precludes, by use of a magnetically activated relay, the firing of the handgun unless a magnet of the appropriate strength is placed in proximity to the handle of the handgun. Such magnet may be imbedded in a ring which can be worn on the user's gun hand.

Test loaded: shall mean loading each chamber of the handgun in question with an empty case with a primer installed.

Transfer: shall mean sell, rent, or lease. Transfer shall not include a sale to a business entity that is primarily a firearm wholesaler, so long as the sale, by its terms, prohibits the purchaser from reselling the handgun to a handgun retailer or consumer in the Commonwealth.

Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Massachusetts may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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