Warren, Kim, Garcia, Raskin Renew Fight to Keep Military-Grade Weapons Off American Streets, Out of Civilian Hands

New York Timesinvestigationrevealed that ammunition from a government-owned manufacturing plant was increasingly being trafficked to Mexican cartels, including Jalisco Cartel
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Washington, D.C.–U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Senator Andy Kim (D-N.J.), along with Representative Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), Ranking Member of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and Representative Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee, reintroduced theStop Militarizing Our Streets Actto prohibit defense contractors and U.S. military-owned manufacturing plants from selling military-grade assault weapons and ammunition to civilians. The bill holds firearm and ammunition dealers accountable by requiring that they comply with preventative measures to remain eligible to contract with the Department of Defense (DoD).
Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) joined in co-sponsoring the bill.
Representatives Gabe Amo (D-R.I.), Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), Judy Chu (D-Calif.), Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Jesus G. "Chuy" Garcia (D-Ill.), Sylvia R. Garcia (D-Texas), Daniel S. Goldman (D-N.Y.), Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.), Al Green (D-Texas), Henry C. "Hank" Johnson Jr. (D-Ga.), Summer L. Lee (D-Pa.), Ted Lieu (D-Calif.), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.), Janice D. Schakowsky (D-Ill.), Lateefah Simon (D-Calif.), and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) joined in co-sponsoring in the House of Representatives.
“Americans’ tax dollars should not be used to fuel gun violence,”said Senator Warren. “Congress must step in to keep Americans safe, and that means stopping the U.S. military and giant defense contractors from selling weapons of war to cartels, criminal groups, and mass shooters that terrorize our communities.”
The Lake City Army Ammunition Plant has produced ammunition that has been used in at least12 high-profilemass shootings since 2012 and is responsible for producing a third of ammunition used in AR-15 style rifles in the U.S. market. The plant is operated by the private manufacturer Olin Winchester, whichmarkets its relationship to the militaryto entice civilian customers to “use the same product selected by the US Military.”
A recentNew York Timesinvestigation foundMexican cartels, like the Jalisco New Generation Cartel responsible for widespread violence in Mexico in February 2026, have also used Lake City ammunition in attacks against police and civilians, including a deadly 2019 attack in Villa Unión, Mexico.
TheStop Militarizing Our Streets Actprohibits DoD contractors from selling military-grade assault weapons and ammunition to civilians. It also requires that military contractors only sell all other firearms and ammunition to commercial dealers that follow minimum safety practices, such as maintaining a low number of crime gun traces and screening customers.
The Act also increases oversight by requiring government-owned plants to report to Congress the scale of their commercial sales and plans for avoiding the diversion of ammunition into the illegal market. The bill also requires DoD to report the types of firearms sold by military contractors and the amount of revenue those sellers receive from DoD annually.
“We should not live in a world where weapons and ammunition sold by the government end up in the hands of violent criminals and are used to devastate our own communities,”said Congressman Robert Garcia. “That’s why I’m proud to introduce this bill to keep weapons of war off our streets. It would require common-sense oversight, like background checks and record maintenance, and allow for congressional oversight of contractors to make sure the weapons they make don’t end up in the black market.”
“Weapons of war simply have no place in our communities, and it is our responsibility to keep military-grade weapons, manufactured by our own Department of Defense’s contractors, out of the wrong hands. This legislation is a critical tool in our fight to end the gun violence epidemic that is tearing families apart across our country,”said Senator Kim.
“As military-grade lethal weapons engineered for combat are funneled into our neighborhoods by government contractors and manufacturers, the Department of Defense must examine its role in exacerbating the gun violence epidemic,” saidRepresentative Raskin. The current cycle of production saturates our communities with firearms and ultimately arms criminals. We need to adopt industry-wide enhancements to safety and transparency standards. The Stop Militarizing Our Streets Act is a necessary intervention to ensure no more innocent lives are lost on American soil to wartime munitions that bear a government label.”
This bill is endorsed by the following organizations: Everytown, Brady, Giffords, and March for Our Lives.
"The unchecked transfer of military-grade firearms and ammunition into the civilian marketplace poses serious risks to public safety. Updating purchasing and sales standards for the Department of Defense, its contractors, and downstream commercial buyers would help limit the proliferation of these weapons and reduce the likelihood of them falling into dangerous hands. We are grateful to Senator Elizabeth Warren, Representatives Jamie Raskin and Robert Garcia for advancing legislation that recognizes this risk and takes meaningful steps to protect lives,” saidGIFFORDS Executive Director Emma Brown.
“For too long, gun manufacturers have benefited from lucrative federal contracts while simultaneously selling military-grade assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition into the civilian market. That is an indefensible contradiction,”said Jackie Corin, Executive Director and Co-Founder of March For Our Lives.“The Stop Militarizing Our Streets Act draws a clear line: companies that choose to sell military-grade weapons and covered ammunition into the commercial market should not be eligible for Department of Defense contracts. Our public dollars should never subsidize the proliferation of weapons that put our communities at risk. Public dollars must align with public safety.”
Senator Warren has led efforts to implement gun violence prevention reforms and hold agencies accountable for their handling of firearms sales:
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