RICHMOND, VA – A new measure introduced in the Virginia House of Delegates would impose an 11% excise tax on the retail sale of firearms and ammunition, directing the revenue to support gun violence prevention and intervention initiatives across the Commonwealth.
House Bill 919, sponsored by Delegate Lopez and prefiled on January 13 for the 2026 General Assembly session, would create a new section in Virginia’s tax code establishing what it calls the Firearm and Ammunition Tax. If enacted, the law would take effect July 1, 2026.
Under the proposal, firearm dealers, ammunition vendors, and licensed manufacturers that sell directly to consumers in Virginia would be required to pay an additional 11% tax on their gross receipts from firearm and ammunition sales. The measure mirrors the structure of existing federal excise taxes on firearms but would dedicate proceeds to state-level prevention efforts.
The tax would not apply to sales made to law enforcement agencies or officers purchasing weapons for official use. It would also exempt small retailers with less than $5,000 in quarterly gross receipts from firearms and ammunition sales.
All revenue collected through the tax would be deposited into the Virginia Gun Violence Intervention and Prevention Fund, which supports community-based initiatives aimed at reducing gun-related injuries and deaths. The Department of Taxation would administer and enforce the new provisions in accordance with Virginia’s existing retail sales and use tax laws.
If approved, the measure would mark one of the state’s most significant firearm-related tax policies in recent years, joining a growing number of state-level efforts across the country to dedicate gun sales revenue to violence reduction programs.
House Bill 919 would levy an 11% tax on retail gun and ammunition sales in Virginia to fund statewide gun violence prevention initiatives.
