Forced reset triggers are not illegal under federal law. A 2024 federal court ruling and a May 2025 settlement between the Department of Justice and Rare Breed Triggers established that FRT-15s and Wide Open Triggers are not machine guns under the National Firearms Act.1United States Department of Justice. Department of Justice Announces Settlement of Litigation Between the Federal Government and Rare Breed Triggers The catch is state law: roughly ten states independently ban FRTs or similar trigger-activating devices, and possession in those states can still bring felony charges regardless of what the federal government does.2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Rare Breed Triggers FRT-15s and Wide-Open Triggers (WOTs) Return Where you live is what determines whether owning one is legal for you.
Federal Law After Cargill and the DOJ Settlement
For years, the ATF classified FRTs as machine guns, taking the position that the forced reset produced multiple shots from what was functionally a single trigger action. That interpretation collapsed after the Supreme Court’s June 14, 2024 decision in Garland v. Cargill, which struck down the ATF’s bump stock rule. The Court held that a semi-automatic rifle equipped with a bump stock “is not a ‘machinegun'” because it cannot fire more than one shot “by a single function of the trigger,” and each reset-and-pull cycle counts as a separate function no matter how quickly it happens.3Supreme Court of the United States. Garland v. Cargill, No. 22-976
The federal machine gun definition the Court was interpreting sits in 26 U.S.C. § 5845 and covers any weapon that shoots “automatically more than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger.”4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 5845 – Definitions Weeks after Cargill, a federal court in the Northern District of Texas applied that same reasoning to FRTs. In National Association for Gun Rights v. Garland, the court held on July 23, 2024 that FRT-15s and Wide Open Triggers are not machine guns and that possessing them does not violate federal law. The judge found that an FRT “merely re-sets the trigger back into a depressed state but does not actually force another trigger pull.”2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Rare Breed Triggers FRT-15s and Wide-Open Triggers (WOTs) Return
On May 16, 2025, the Department of Justice formalized that outcome. Under the settlement, the federal government agreed not to enforce the machine gun provisions of 18 U.S.C. § 922(o) or the NFA against anyone possessing or transferring an eligible FRT, and it agreed to return previously seized devices to their owners.1United States Department of Justice. Department of Justice Announces Settlement of Litigation Between the Federal Government and Rare Breed Triggers So under federal law, buying, owning, and transferring an FRT is lawful.
What the Settlement Does Not Cover
One boundary matters more than any other here. The settlement explicitly excludes machine gun conversion devices such as auto sears, drop-in auto sears, lightning links, “Glock switches,” and trigger control group travel reducers.2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Rare Breed Triggers FRT-15s and Wide-Open Triggers (WOTs) Return Those devices actually allow a firearm to keep firing from a single trigger pull, so they remain machine guns under federal law. An FRT speeds up how fast you can pull the trigger; a conversion device removes the need to pull it more than once. Confusing the two is the difference between a lawful accessory and a federal felony.
States That Still Ban FRTs
The federal settlement does not preempt state law. The ATF’s own guidance warns that “some states independently prohibit the possession of forced reset triggers or trigger activating devices.”2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Rare Breed Triggers FRT-15s and Wide-Open Triggers (WOTs) Return Retailers commonly restrict FRT shipments to approximately ten states and the District of Columbia for this reason.
States get there through different statutory routes. Some define a “trigger activator” as any device that lets a semi-automatic firearm fire more than one shot from a single trigger pull by using recoil energy to reset and continue firing. Others use the label “multiburst trigger activator.” A third group reaches FRTs through their own machine gun definitions, which are often worded more broadly than the federal statute and can capture any mechanism that allows firing without a separate trigger pull for each shot.
Before you buy or possess an FRT, look up your state’s penal code definitions of prohibited trigger activators, machine gun components, and multiburst devices. A device the federal government now considers lawful can still land you in state court.
If the ATF is returning a seized FRT to you and you live in a state that bans it, the agency has said it will work with you to deliver the device somewhere you can lawfully possess it, or transfer it to a third party who can legally receive it.2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Rare Breed Triggers FRT-15s and Wide-Open Triggers (WOTs) Return
Penalties If You Get It Wrong
State Charges
State penalties for possessing a prohibited trigger activator vary. Fines generally run from $1,000 to $10,000, and prison sentences range from one to ten years depending on the jurisdiction and whether the offense is charged as a misdemeanor or a felony. Some states treat possession of a banned trigger activator the same as possession of a machine gun, which typically carries felony-level consequences. The ATF can also seize unlawful firearms and accessories under the Department of Justice’s asset forfeiture authority.5Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Asset Forfeiture
Federal Charges for the Devices People Confuse With FRTs
Federal machine gun penalties still hit hard for the conversion devices excluded from the settlement. Unlawful transfer or possession of a machine gun violates 18 U.S.C. § 922(o).6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts The penalty under 18 U.S.C. § 924(a)(2) is up to ten years in federal prison.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 924 – Penalties A separate NFA provision, 26 U.S.C. § 5871, imposes a fine of up to $10,000 and up to ten years of imprisonment.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 5871 – Penalties These statutes now apply to actual conversion devices rather than FRTs, but anyone caught with an auto sear or a Glock switch faces the full weight of them.
Traveling With an FRT Across State Lines
Federal “safe passage” law under 18 U.S.C. § 926A lets you transport a firearm through states where you couldn’t otherwise carry it, provided the firearm is unloaded and stored outside the passenger compartment.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 926A – Interstate Transportation of Firearms The statute covers “firearms” and “ammunition.” An FRT is neither. It’s an accessory, and whether the safe passage protection extends to a trigger mechanism in your trunk is unclear at best.
The practical risk is real. Driving through a state that bans trigger activators with an FRT in the vehicle can expose you to state criminal charges, and the federal transport statute likely won’t shield you because it wasn’t written with accessories in mind. The cautious approach is to avoid moving an FRT through or into any state that prohibits the device. If you have to get one from point A to point B, shipping it separately to a destination where it’s legal is the safer option.
Buying an FRT
Because FRTs are not classified as firearms under federal law, they do not require a serial number, an FFL transfer, or a background check to purchase. In states where possession is legal, you can buy one online and have it shipped directly to your home, the same way you’d order a stock or a handguard. That could change if Congress passes legislation targeting trigger-activating devices, but as of 2026 no such federal requirement exists.
State rules can be stricter. Some states that ban FRTs also regulate firearm accessories more broadly, and a few require background checks for certain components. Verify your state’s rules before ordering.
What Could Change
The federal settlement rests on a specific court ruling and the current administration’s enforcement priorities. A future administration could try to revisit FRT classification through new rulemaking, though the Cargill Supreme Court precedent makes that a steep climb. Congress is the other variable. Several bills targeting trigger-activating devices have been introduced in recent sessions; none have passed, but the possibility is worth tracking if you own or plan to buy an FRT.
If you previously received an ATF warning notice classifying your FRT as a machine gun, that classification is no longer enforced federally, and the ATF has established a process to return seized FRT-15s and WOTs to their owners.2Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Rare Breed Triggers FRT-15s and Wide-Open Triggers (WOTs) Return Check your state’s law first, because that’s where the remaining legal exposure lives.