MMA Advocates for Firearm Safety at Recent Committee Hearings

February 26, 2026

The MMA continues to engage in legislative efforts aimed at reducing firearm-related death and inuries, and supporting evidence-based public health policies. 

The MMA, along with seven specialty societies, submitted a letter in support of HF 3433 (Greenman, DFL–Minneapolis).  

This bill would prohibit the possession, ownership, and transfer of semiautomatic military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines in Minnesota, with provisions for current owners to obtain state-issued certification and comply with storage and enforcement requirements. HF 3433 was heard in the House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee on February 24.  

The letter highlighted the public health impacts of firearm violence, particularly on children and adolescents. Firearm deaths among ages 1–17 have increased by 106% since 2013, and have been the leading cause of death for this group since 2020. Firearm injuries also cause long-term physical and mental health consequences. Studies cited by Everytown for Gun Safety show that states with assault weapons bans experience lower mass shooting fatalities, and the 1994 federal Assault Weapons Ban reduced mass shooting deaths by 70% during its 10-year implementation. 

The MMA also submitted a letter in strong support of HF 3351 (Pinto, DFL–St. Paul), which would repeal state preemption and allow local municipalities to implement firearm regulations tailored to their communities. HF 3351 was heard in the House Elections Finance and Government Operations Committee on February 25. The letter highlighted that more than 500 Minnesotans die from firearms each year, with numbers rising annually, and that physicians see firsthand the physical and emotional toll of firearm injuries.  

Neither bill advanced out of committee. HF 3433 failed on a party-line vote in the House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee, and HF 3351 failed in a 6–6 tie in the House Elections Finance and Government Operations Committee. 

The other specialty societies supporting this legislation include: the Minnesota Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians, Minnesota Chapter of the American College of Physicians, Minnesota Psychiatric Society, Minnesota Society of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the Minnesota Chapter of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.