Ability Of Assault Weapon Owners To Sell To A Pawnbroker Under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) Outside The Context Of An Unredeemed Pledge, Applicability Of The Exemption In Subsection .390(2)(c) To The Pawnbroker’s Subsequent Sale Or Transfer Of The Weapon To A Nonre

FIREARMS—STATUTES—Ability Of Assault Weapon Owners To Sell To A Pawnbroker Under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) Outside The Context Of An Unredeemed Pledge, Applicability Of The Exemption In Subsection .390(2)(c) To The Pawnbroker’s Subsequent Sale Or Transfer Of The Weapon To A Nonresident, And Effect Of The Existence Of An Outstanding Pawnbroker Loan

An owner of an “assault weapon” as defined in RCW 9.41.010(2) who is legally authorized to transfer the weapon may sell it to a pawnbroker under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) outside the context of an unredeemed pledge as long as the pawnbroker is properly licensed and acquires the weapon for the purpose of selling or transferring it to a person who does not reside in Washington.

If a pawnbroker is properly licensed and acquires an assault weapon under circumstances that satisfy RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), then the pawnbroker’s subsequent sale or transfer of the assault weapon to a nonresident could also qualify for the exemption in RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), and may be legal as long as it complies with any other applicable state or federal law.

The existence of an outstanding pawnbroker loan does not preclude the owner of an assault weapon pledged as security for a pawnbroker loan from selling the firearm to the pawnbroker before the loan has expired.

October 29, 2024

Dear Representative Walsh:

           By letter previously acknowledged, you have requested our opinion on the following questions:

1.         May the owner of an “assault weapon,” as defined in RCW 9.41.010(2), sell the weapon to a pawnbroker under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) outside the context of an unredeemed pledge?

2.         Could a pawnbroker’s subsequent sale or transfer to nonresidents of firearms acquired under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) also qualify for the exemption under subsection .390(2)(c)?

3.         May the owner of an assault weapon pledged as security for a pawnbroker loan offer to sell the firearm to the pawnbroker before the

[original page 2]

loan has expired, for the purpose of selling or transferring the weapon to a person who does not reside in this state?

BRIEF ANSWERS

           1.         Yes, provided that the pawnbroker is properly licensed under state and federal law, acquires the assault weapon from an individual legally authorized to transfer it, and acquires it for the purpose of selling or transferring it to a person who does not reside in Washington.

           2.         Yes. If a pawnbroker is properly licensed and acquires an assault weapon under circumstances that satisfy RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), then the pawnbroker’s subsequent sale or transfer of the assault weapon to a nonresident could also qualify for the exemption in RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), and may be legal as long as it complies with any other applicable state or federal law.

           3.         Yes. The existence of an outstanding pawnbroker loan does not preclude a transaction that otherwise satisfies RCW 9.41.390(2)(c).

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

           In 2023, the legislature passed Substitute House Bill 1240 (SHB 1240), 68th Leg., Reg. Sess. (Wash. 2023). Section 3 of SHB 1240, codified as RCW 9.41.390, prohibits the distribution, sale, or offer for sale of any assault weapon, subject to exceptions. RCW 9.41.390(1), (2); see also RCW 9.41.010(2) (defining “assault weapon”). Relevant here, RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) provides an exception for the distribution, offer for sale, or sale of an assault weapon to or by a licensed dealer “where the dealer acquires the assault weapon from an individual legally authorized to possess or transfer the assault weapon for the purpose of selling or transferring the assault weapon to a person who does not reside in this state.”

           In AGO 2023 No. 5, we addressed whether a pawnbroker may sell an assault weapon pledged as security for a loan when the firearm owner fails to redeem the pledged firearm. We concluded that they could not because in that situation the pawnbroker does not acquire the assault weapon for the purpose of selling or transferring it to a nonresident. AGO 2023 No. 5, at 6. Instead, the pawnbroker initially acquires the pledged assault weapon to hold as security for a loan, and subsequently acquires ownership by operation of law under RCW 19.60.061(2). AGO 2023 No. 5, at 6.

           You have now requested our opinion regarding the applicability of RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) to pawnbrokers outside the context of an unredeemed pledge. For the purpose of our analysis, we again assume that the pawnbroker has a federal firearms license and is therefore a “licensed dealer” as that term is defined in RCW 9.41.010(29). See 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(11)(C), (a)(12); § 923(a). We confine our analysis to SHB 1240 and do not examine the legality of a particular sale under any other state or federal law.

[original page 3]

ANALYSIS

1.         May the owner of an “assault weapon,” as defined in RCW 9.41.010(2), sell the weapon to a pawnbroker under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) outside the context of an unredeemed pledge?

           As noted above, we limit our analysis to whether this type of transaction could fall within the scope of RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), and we do not examine its legality under any other state or federal law. 

           Under RCW 9.41.390, the prohibition on assault weapon sales in RCW 9.41.390(1) does not apply to the following transactions:

           The distribution, offer for sale, or sale of an assault weapon to or by a dealer that is properly licensed under federal and state law where the dealer acquires the assault weapon from an individual legally authorized to possess or transfer the assault weapon for the purpose of selling or transferring the assault weapon to a person who does not reside in this state. The purpose of this section is to allow individuals who no longer wish to own an assault weapon to sell their assault weapon and is not intended to allow Washington dealers to purchase assault weapons wholesale for the purpose of selling a stock or inventory of assault weapons online or in person to nonresidents[.]

RCW 9.41.390(2)(c).

           By its plain language, this exception permits the sale of an assault weapon to a licensed dealer, if (1) the individual selling the weapon is legally authorized to transfer it, and (2) the dealer’s acquisition is for the purpose of selling or transferring the assault weapon to a person who does not reside in Washington. In addition, the exception explains that it is not intended to allow Washington dealers to purchase assault weapons wholesale for the purpose of selling a stock or inventory of assault weapons to nonresidents. This enacted statement of legislative intent is included in the plain reading of the statute. See G-P Gypsum Corp. v. Dep’t of Revenue, 169 Wn.2d 304, 310, 237 P.3d 256 (2010).

           In AGO 2023 No. 5, we concluded that the second requirement could not be met in the context of unredeemed pledges because the pawnbroker’s initial acquisition of the assault weapon was for a different purpose—as security for a loan—and the pawnbroker’s subsequent retention of the firearm was by operation of law. See AGO 2023 No. 5, at 5-6. But outside of that context, we reach a different conclusion. The statute does not distinguish between licensed pawnbrokers and other licensed dealers. Thus, assuming the seller is legally authorized to transfer the assault weapon, and the pawnbroker acquires the assault weapon for the purpose of selling or transferring it to a nonresident, the sale would fall within the scope of the exception.

[original page 4]

2.         Could a pawnbroker’s subsequent sale or transfer to nonresidents of firearms acquired under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) also qualify for the exemption under subsection .390(2)(c)?

           For the same reason, we conclude that sales of assault weapons by pawnbrokers to nonresidents may fall within the exception under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c). Subsection .390(2)(c) exempts sales by a licensed dealer where the dealer acquires the assault weapon for the purpose of selling or transferring it to a nonresident. RCW 9.41.390(2)(c). Thus, if the pawnbroker is properly licensed and acquires an assault weapon under circumstances that satisfy RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), the pawnbroker’s sale of the weapon to a nonresident could qualify for that exemption.

           We note, however, that we similarly limit our analysis of this question to whether this type of transaction could fall within the scope of RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), and we do not examine the legality of this type of transaction under any other state or federal law. By its terms, RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) merely exempts sales from the prohibition in RCW 9.41.390(1). It does not serve as an exception to other laws prohibiting certain types of interstate firearm sales transactions. See Swinomish Indian Tribal Cmty. v. Dep’t of Ecology, 178 Wn.2d 571, 582, 311 P.3d 6 (2013) (exceptions to statutory provisions are narrowly construed in order to give effect to the legislative intent underlying the general provisions). Thus, pawnbrokers selling or transferring assault weapons under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) must comply with all other applicable state and federal laws governing firearm sales or transfers to persons who do not reside in this state. Whether a particular sale to a nonresident is legally permissible is a fact-specific question that is outside the scope of this opinion.

3.         May the owner of an assault weapon pledged as security for a pawnbroker loan offer to sell the firearm to the pawnbroker before the loan has expired, for the purpose of selling or transferring the weapon to a person who does not reside in this state?

           After the ninety-day term of a pawnbroker loan, unredeemed property becomes the property of the pawnbroker by operation of law. RCW 19.60.061(2). As noted earlier, we concluded in AGO 2023 No. 5 that when a pawnbroker acquires ownership of an assault weapon through an unredeemed pledge, the pawnbroker may not sell the firearm under RCW 9.41.390(2)(c). In that context, the pawnbroker does not acquire the assault weapon for the purpose of selling or transferring it to a nonresident. Instead, the pawnbroker initially acquires the firearm as security for a loan and subsequently obtains ownership through operation of law.

           If the owner instead offers to sell the pledged assault weapon to the pawnbroker before the loan’s expiration, then the transaction may fall within RCW 9.41.390(2)(c). Although the pawnbroker still initially acquires the firearm as security for a loan, the pawnbroker subsequently acquires ownership by purchasing it from the owner for the purpose of selling or transferring it to a nonresident.

[original page 5]

           Moreover, an owner’s decision to sell a specific firearm with an outstanding pawnbroker pledge does not constitute the sort of volume sale excluded by subsection .390(2)(c)’s provision regarding wholesale sales. RCW 9.41.390(2)(c) states that it is “not intended to allow Washington dealers to purchase assault weapons wholesale for the purpose of selling a stock or inventory of assault weapons online or in person to nonresidents[.]” An owner’s sale of a specific firearm subject to an outstanding pledge is not made on a large scale or by volume, and therefore presumptively complies with this statement of legislative intent.

           We conclude that if a particular sales transaction otherwise satisfies the criteria in RCW 9.41.390(2)(c), the existence of an outstanding pawnbroker loan does not preclude the transaction from falling within RCW 9.41.390(2)(c).

           We trust that the foregoing will be useful to you.

ROBERT W. FERGUSON
  Attorney General

DAVID MOON
  Assistant Attorney General

wro