Last year, Queensland came close becoming the first Australian state to formally ban 3D printed guns. In May, 2014, former LNP parliamentarian Carl Judge, from the PUP Party, introduced legislation amending the state’s existing Weapons Act to ban 3D printed gun ownership, including specific penalties for 3D printed guns, and the requirement that 3D printed gun owners obtain a digital firearms license. Such regulation is now off the table in Queensland, an official response to the bill from the state’s government.
Though a parliamentary committee was reluctant to pass the Weapons (Digital 3D and Printed Firearms) Amendment Bill 2014 in November of last year, they did suggest that 3D printed guns deserved some investigation. The bill then lapsed this January, as the state head to election. With the Australian Labor Party (ALP) winning the election, the Labor Government decided to drop the legislation, saying, “Queensland already has legislation dealing with the unlawful manufacture of weapons that carries with it some of the harshest penalties in Australia.”
3D printed gun regulation in the state is not final, however, as the government also stated that it would await the results of a senate inquiry into the country’s overall patterns of gun violence. Last month, after at least one police raid had turned up 3D printed weapons, the Senate’s Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee recommended that the Australian governments examine the potential for enacting national legislation regarding the 3D printing of guns and their parts, saying that it “recommends that uniform legislation regulating the manufacture of 3D printed firearms and firearm parts be introduced in all jurisdictions,” despite the fact that the report also notes that “It seems that current laws pertaining to firearms would apply equally to 3D printed firearms and firearm parts.” The federal Australian government has yet to respond to the senate report, and depending on what they decide, Queensland may have to follow suit.
