The Gun Safety Incentive Act establishes federal guidelines for safe firearm storage, mandates safety warnings on new firearms, expands safe storage requirements for firearm sales, creates a grant program for states to distribute storage devices, and offers a tax credit to businesses selling safe storage devices.
André Carson
Representative
IN-7
The Gun Safety Incentive Act aims to promote responsible firearm ownership by establishing voluntary best practices for safe storage developed by the Attorney General. It mandates clear safe storage warnings on newly manufactured firearms and expands existing federal law to require safe storage information for all firearm purchases, including rifles and shotguns. Furthermore, the Act establishes a grant program to help states and Tribes distribute free safe storage devices and creates a tax credit for businesses selling these devices.
Gun Safety Bill Expands Safe Storage Rules to Rifles, Offers Tax Credit for Safes, and Funds Free Lockboxes
The aptly named Gun Safety Incentive Act is looking to make safe firearm storage a lot more common and accessible. This bill doesn’t ban anything, but instead uses a mix of mandates, grants, and tax breaks to encourage better safety habits across the board.
The New Rules for Buying and Selling Guns
Starting January 1, 2027, if you manufacture or import a significant number of firearms (more than 250 a year), you’ll have a new job: making sure every single gun sold comes with a clear, noticeable written warning. This notice must scream, "SAFE STORAGE SAVES LIVES," and include the web address for the Attorney General’s public safety site (Sec. 3). This is a compliance cost for manufacturers, but it ensures that the safety message is literally in the buyer's hands the moment they purchase a firearm.
Perhaps the biggest change for everyday buyers is how safe storage requirements apply across all firearm types. Currently, federal law requires certain information or standards for safe storage when purchasing a handgun. This Act expands that rule to include rifles and shotguns as well (Sec. 4). This means that whether you’re buying a pistol for self-defense or a deer rifle for hunting, the same federal safe storage standards will apply during the transfer process. This change kicks in 180 days after the bill becomes law.
Free Lockboxes and Tax Breaks for Retailers
This bill sets up a new Safe Firearm Storage Grant Program run by the Attorney General, authorizing $10 million annually from 2027 through 2035 (Sec. 5). What’s the money for? It goes to states and Indian Tribes to create local assistance programs whose sole purpose is to buy safe storage devices—think lockboxes, safes, or biometric storage—and give them out to the public.
If you live in an area that gets this funding, you might soon be able to pick up a free safe storage device. The rules are strict: at least 75% of the grant money must go directly toward running these distribution programs. This is a huge win for folks who want to store their firearms safely but can’t absorb the cost of a quality safe, making safe storage accessible regardless of income.
Meanwhile, the bill also creates a temporary federal tax credit for businesses that sell safe storage devices (Sec. 6). When a retailer sells a qualifying safe or lockbox, they can claim a tax credit equal to 10% of the sale price, up to $400 per device. This credit lasts until the end of 2032. This is designed to incentivize retailers to stock and promote these devices, potentially driving down costs for consumers and boosting the market for safety equipment.
The Attorney General’s Safety Playbook
Finally, the bill tasks the Attorney General with developing voluntary best practices for safe firearm storage within 180 days (Sec. 2). These aren't mandatory rules, but public education guidelines covering storage in homes, vehicles, businesses, and off-site facilities. They have to update these guidelines yearly and publish them online. While this is primarily an educational effort, the AG’s broad authority to define these “best practices” for various settings is the kind of detail that will need close watching to ensure the guidelines remain practical and fair.