609.67 MACHINE GUNS AND SHORT-BARRELED SHOTGUNS.
    Subdivision 1. Definitions. (a) "Machine gun" means any firearm designed to discharge, or
capable of discharging automatically more than once by a single function of the trigger.
(b) "Shotgun" means a weapon designed, redesigned, made or remade which is intended to be
fired from the shoulder and uses the energy of the explosive in a fixed shotgun shell to fire through
a smooth bore either a number of ball shot or a single projectile for each single pull of the trigger.
(c) "Short-barreled shotgun" means a shotgun having one or more barrels less than 18 inches
in length and any weapon made from a shotgun if such weapon as modified has an overall length
less than 26 inches.
(d) "Trigger activator" means a removable manual or power driven trigger activating device
constructed and designed so that, when attached to a firearm, the rate at which the trigger may be
pulled increases and the rate of fire of the firearm increases to that of a machine gun.
(e) "Machine gun conversion kit" means any part or combination of parts designed and
intended for use in converting a weapon into a machine gun, and any combination of parts from
which a machine gun can be assembled, but does not include a spare or replacement part for a
machine gun that is possessed lawfully under section 609.67, subdivision 3.
    Subd. 2. Acts prohibited. Except as otherwise provided herein, whoever owns, possesses, or
operates a machine gun, any trigger activator or machine gun conversion kit, or a short-barreled
shotgun may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than five years or to payment of a fine
of not more than $10,000, or both.
    Subd. 3. Uses permitted. The following persons may own or possess a machine gun or
short-barreled shotgun provided the provisions of subdivision 4 are complied with:
(1) law enforcement officers for use in the course of their duties;
(2) chief executive officers of correctional facilities and other personnel thereof authorized
by them and persons in charge of other institutions for the retention of persons convicted or
accused of crime, for use in the course of their duties;
(3) persons possessing machine guns or short-barreled shotguns which, although designed as
weapons, have been determined by the superintendent of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension
or the superintendent's delegate by reason of the date of manufacture, value, design or other
characteristics to be primarily collector's items, relics, museum pieces or objects of curiosity,
ornaments or keepsakes, and are not likely to be used as weapons;
(4) manufacturers of ammunition who possess and use machine guns for the sole purpose of
testing ammunition manufactured for sale to federal and state agencies or political subdivisions;
(5) dealers and manufacturers who are federally licensed to buy and sell, or manufacture
machine guns or short-barreled shotguns and who either use the machine guns or short-barreled
shotguns in peace officer training under courses approved by the Board of Peace Officer Standards
and Training, or are engaged in the sale of machine guns or short-barreled shotguns to federal and
state agencies or political subdivisions; and
(6) persons employed by the Minnesota National Guard as security guards, for use in
accordance with applicable federal military regulations.
    Subd. 4. Report required. (a) A person owning or possessing a machine gun or
short-barreled shotgun as authorized by subdivision 3, clause (1), (2), (3), or (4) shall, within
ten days after acquiring such ownership or possession, file a written report with the Bureau
of Criminal Apprehension, showing the person's name and address; the person's official title
and position, if any; a description of the machine gun or short-barreled shotgun sufficient to
enable identification thereof; the purpose for which it is owned or possessed; and such further
information as the bureau may reasonably require.
(b) A dealer or manufacturer owning or having a machine gun or short-barreled shotgun
as authorized by subdivision 3, clause (5) shall, by the tenth day of each month, file a written
report with the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension showing the name and address of the dealer
or manufacturer and the serial number of each machine gun or short-barreled shotgun acquired
or manufactured during the previous month.
    Subd. 5. Exceptions. This section does not apply to members of the armed services of either
the United States or the state of Minnesota for use in the course of their duties or to security
guards employed by the Minnesota National Guard for use in accordance with applicable federal
military regulations.
    Subd. 6. Preemption. Laws 1977, chapter 255, supersedes all local ordinances, rules and
regulations.
History: 1963 c 753 art 1 s 609.67; 1977 c 255 s 1,2; 1979 c 102 s 13; 1984 c 628 art 3
s 11; 1986 c 444; 1987 c 93 s 1,2; 1990 c 439 s 5; 1993 c 326 art 1 s 19,20; 1993 c 366 s 10;
2006 c 273 s 11,12