It’s a well-known fact that serializing ammunition is not practical and impossible at scale from a manufacturing standpoint, which is likely why the Illinois legislature introduced a bill to require the serialization of all handgun ammunition by 2027, and criminalize possession of any that isn’t. The bill is bad by any standard.
HB4414, was introduced on January 14, by Democrat Rep. Anne Stava (email: [email protected]). Stava is a former commissioner on the Naperville Board of Fire and Police.
Effective January 1, 2027 it would be a crime to “sell, lease, or transfer serialized handgun ammunition without being a registered handgun ammunition vendor…”
It would also be a crime (Class C misdemeanor) to possess non-serialized handgun ammunition “in any public place,” which the bill defines as “an area open to the public and includes, but is not limited to, streets, sidewalks, bridges, alleys, plazas, parks, driveways, front yards, parking lots, including motor vehicles in these areas…”
The bill not only requires the serializing of all “assembled ammunition” but also “bullets used for reloading or handloading.” Bullets often deform or disintegrate beyond recognition, making the serializing not a function of traceability, but costly compliance and deterrence.
Popular ammunition manufacturer Fenix Ammunition made the following observation in response to the news of this bill:
They know, of course, that serializing ammunition cases is a manufacturing impossibility at scale. It’s a de facto ban. It always is. This is not about gun safety or solving crimes – this is about driving up the cost of gun ownership to the point where it’s unobtainable.
The measure applies to:
- Handgun ammunition
- .22 caliber rimfire ammunition
- Assembled handgun ammunition packaged for retail sale
- Bullets used for reloading or handloading handgun ammunition that are packaged for retail sale
Adding insult to injury, the bill would transfer the cost of implementation to gun owners through a five-cent-per-round fee that would cover “…the infrastructure, implementation, operational, enforcement, and future development costs…”
It would also create a “retail handgun ammunition vendor’s registry” with an annual fee of $50 per year for each retail location (adjusted annually for inflation based upon the Consumer Price Index) to be administered by the State Police.
And though the serializing requirement applies to handgun ammunition, the bill makes possession of it for firing through a rifle with a barrel of less than 16 inches or a shotgun with a barrel of less than 18 inches a crime as well (Class A misdemeanor).
As with all gun control bills, it provides exemptions for law enforcement, state police, and armed services.
The bill demonstrates and foreshadows the desired outcome of disarmament purely based upon the impracticality of the measure.
