Yesterday the Rhode Island Governor signed a bill into law that requires shooting ranges to post new signage immediately.  H 8069 Substitute A enacts new section 11-47-60.5 of the Rhode Island General Laws.  Violations of Chapter 47 may be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws Sec. 11-47-26 (which also authorizes imprisonment but we highly doubt imprisonment would be imposed for lack of a sign!).

The new law requires a sign of at least 8.5 by 11 inches to be posted in shooting range areas that reads:

WARNING: If you or a loved one is experiencing distress and/or depression, call the 988 Suicide and Crisis hotline or text “HOME” to 741741.

The text must be black on a white background, in at least 36 point font, and must be in both English and Spanish.  Thankfully the benevolent legislature allows FFLs to choose their own font.

The law also directs shooting ranges that operate on a membership basis to require non-members to be accompanied at all times by a member or shooting range employee while using the range (i.e., no unsupervised guest access).

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Pending laws in your State and in other States that will directly impact your business are located in our State and Federal Firearm Bill Tracker.  This list has been curated to contain legislation that affects your firearms business.  New requirements such as Rhode Island’s new signage, pending “assault weapons” and “large capacity magazine” bans, new taxes, new business licenses, and much more are all tracked. 

Don’t rely on an email like this that you may miss; sign up for Orchid eState™ and proactively prepare your business for any new legal requirements and restrictions.  Starting at only $25/mo it is of incredible value – and necessary –  for a heavily regulated industry such as ours.  Learn more here.