Pennsylvania Uniform Firearms Act Preemption (18 Pa.C.S. §6120)

Pennsylvania's firearms preemption is among the strongest in the nation. 18 Pa.C.S. Section 6120(a) provides: "No county, municipality or township may in any manner regulate the lawful ownership, possession, transfer or transportation of firearms, ammunition or ammunition components when carried or transported for purposes not prohibited by the laws of this Commonwealth." The PA Supreme Court reaffirmed this preemption in Ortiz v. Commonwealth (1996). Multiple cities have attempted local ordinances - Philadelphia's lost-and-stolen reporting and assault-weapons measures, Pittsburgh's 2019 post-Tree of Life package, and Allentown's open-carry restriction - and courts struck them down as preempted. A License to Carry Firearms is issued by county sheriffs under 18 Pa.C.S. Section 6109, valid five years. Pennsylvania requires no permit to purchase long guns; handgun purchases require a PICS background check.

Cities enacting preempted firearm ordinances face civil suits and injunctions. A 2014 law giving individuals a damages-and-fees cause of action (Act 192 of 2014) was struck down in Leach v. Commonwealth, so no such statutory remedy currently exists. Violating state firearm laws is generally a misdemeanor or felony under the Uniform Firearms Act.