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Ninth Circuit Upholds California Law Allowing Gun Owners’ Private Data to be Shared with Research Institutions in NRA-ILA-Supported Case

Monday, May 13, 2024

Ninth Circuit Upholds California Law Allowing Gun Owners’ Private Data to be Shared with Research Institutions in NRA-ILA-Supported Case

On May 8, 2024, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld California’s law requiring California’s Department of Justice to provide firearm purchasers’ and CCW applicants’ information to research institutions.

In September 2021, California enacted AB 173, which allows the state to disclose highly sensitive information—including a gun owner’s name, social security number, address, place of birth, phone number, occupation, driver’s license or ID number, race, sex, height, weight, hair color, eye color, and the types of firearms they own—to universities and other research institutions. In January 2022, NRA filed suit to stop this attack on gun owners’ privacy.

After the district court ruled in favor of the state, the NRA appealed the case to the Ninth Circuit. This week, unfortunately, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision.

The plaintiffs brought four claims in this case, all of which the court rejected:

Second Amendment: The court held that there was no Second Amendment violation, because the plaintiffs may still purchase, keep, and carry firearms. Moreover, the court denied that the data-sharing has a chilling effect on Second Amendment rights because the law ensures strict data security precautions—despite the fact that a data breach occurred during the pendency of this case.

Fourteenth Amendment right to informational privacy: The court held that there was no Fourteenth Amendment violation, because the information at issue is not intimate personal information in which the plaintiffs have a reasonable expectation of nondisclosure.

Due Process: The plaintiffs argued that the law violates due process because it allows the state to share information that gun owners provided before the law went into effect—when those gun owners reasonably expected that only state agencies would use the information. The court rejected this argument because the law does not apply any new legal consequences to the conduct that occurred before the law’s implementation.

Preemption: The court held there was no violation of the federal Privacy Act (which requires that individuals be provided certain information when required to disclose their social security numbers) because the current CCW application does not request social security numbers. The court found it irrelevant that older CCW applications—which were shared with research institutions—requested social security numbers.

NRA-ILA is disappointed by the Ninth Circuit’s decision but will continue to fight against California’s relentless assault on Californians’ Second Amendment rights.

Please stay tuned to www.nraila.org for future updates on NRA-ILA’s ongoing efforts to defend your constitutional rights.

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North Carolina: Update on Permitless Carry

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

North Carolina: Update on Permitless Carry

Last week the North Carolina General Assembly briefly returned from recess and re-referred Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to the House Rules Committee.

First Affirmative Lawsuit in Support of Gun Owners Filed by Trump’s DOJ

News  

Monday, October 6, 2025

First Affirmative Lawsuit in Support of Gun Owners Filed by Trump’s DOJ

California officials’ egregious foot-dragging over the issuance of carry permits has finally attracted the ire of the federal Department of Justice (DOJ). 

President Trump’s GOP Leads Polling on Crime and Guns, To No Surprise

News  

Monday, October 6, 2025

President Trump’s GOP Leads Polling on Crime and Guns, To No Surprise

A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll revealed that Americans know the President Donald Trump-led Republican Party has a better plan than their Democratic Party opponents on crime and gun control.

Federal Court Strikes Down Biden Administration’s “Engaged in the Business” Rule in NRA Case

Thursday, October 2, 2025

Federal Court Strikes Down Biden Administration’s “Engaged in the Business” Rule in NRA Case

Yesterday, in Butler v. Bondi, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama held that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives exceeded its statutory authority by issuing its 2024 Final Rule expanding ...

NRA Files Amicus Brief in Fifth Circuit Case Challenging the Federal Switchblade Act

Friday, October 3, 2025

NRA Files Amicus Brief in Fifth Circuit Case Challenging the Federal Switchblade Act

Yesterday, the National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief in Knife Rights, Inc. v. Bondi, urging the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to reverse the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas’s decision upholding the Federal ...

Trump Administration Repeals Biden Era Firearms Export Crackdown

News  

Monday, October 6, 2025

Trump Administration Repeals Biden Era Firearms Export Crackdown

Last Monday, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) at the U.S. Department of Commerce published a final rule that reversed a crackdown on the commercial export of firearms from the U.S. to other countries.

Trust in Mass Media Craters to New Lows, in Single Digits With Republicans

News  

Monday, October 6, 2025

Trust in Mass Media Craters to New Lows, in Single Digits With Republicans

There’s an old saying that rings especially true to Second Amendment supporters: If you don’t read the news, you’re uninformed.

Canada’s Public Safety Minister on Gun Ban & Confiscation: “Don’t Ask Me to Explain the Logic”

News  

Monday, September 29, 2025

Canada’s Public Safety Minister on Gun Ban & Confiscation: “Don’t Ask Me to Explain the Logic”

There have been multiple developments on the Canadian gun grab and ban in the last few days, but the most astounding has got to be a leaked bombshell recording of the Liberal Public Safety Minister, ...

Alphabet Eases the Reins on Censorship; Will Gun Content Eventually Benefit?

News  

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

Alphabet Eases the Reins on Censorship; Will Gun Content Eventually Benefit?

With the free speech debate recently co-opted by one TV host’s use of false and incendiary remarks about his political opponents, it might have been easy to miss another important First Amendment story last week. 

U.S. Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Challenge to Hawaii’s Private Property Default Carry Ban

Friday, October 3, 2025

U.S. Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Challenge to Hawaii’s Private Property Default Carry Ban

Today, the U.S. Supreme Court granted the petition for certiorari in Wolford v. Lopez, a challenge to Hawaii’s law forbidding carry on private property open to the public (such as restaurants, gas stations, and grocery stores) ...

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NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.