On July 28, 2025, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed House Bill 1373 (“Public Act 104-0030”) and Senate Bill 8 (“Public Act 104-0031”) into law. First, effective immediately, Public Act 104-0030 requires every law enforcement agency in Illinois to trace the origin of any firearm it recovers by running it through the ATF’s eTrace system and share the results statewide. Second, beginning January 1, 2026, under Public Act 104-0031, gun owners must lock up firearms at home whenever a minor, an “at-risk” individual, or any person who is legally barred from owning a gun could get their hands on it. Public Act 104-0031also requires both federally licensed and unlicensed firearm sellers to verify through the Illinois State Police system that a firearm is not reported as stolen before completing a transfer.

Why the Tracing Rule Matters Right Now, and What Needs to Be Done to Comply with It

Prior to the passage of Public Act 104-0030, law enforcement had discretion to use eTrace; now it is required. The law states that agencies must trace any firearm that was used (or even suspected of being used) in a crime, is unlawfully possessed, or is acquired as abandoned, lost, or discarded. Because the statute took effect immediately, agencies that do not use eTrace must immediately take action to become compliant with the legislation.

The Practical Benefits for Law Enforcement Under This Legislation

• Faster investigative leads. A completed trace request often hands detectives the first piece of evidence – who bought the firearm and where.
• State-to-state linkage. By opting into eTrace’s Collective Data Sharing (“CDS”) feature, departments automatically send their trace reports to every other Illinois agency, shrinking investigative blind spots.
• Audit trail. Because trace submissions are logged, agencies can show compliance to Public Act 104-0030 with the click of a report.

Safe Gun Storage Act (Public Act 104-0031)

Starting January 1, 2026, a firearm left unsecured in a home, car, or other premises where a minor or prohibited possessor is “likely” to gain access can cost the owner up to $500. If someone gains access to the firearm and misuses it, the penalty raises to $1,000, and it climbs to $10,000 when an injury, death or other crime follows.

Although the mandate lands on gun owners, local governments will feel the ripple effects – particularly small-town departments where officers are both enforcers and educators. Expect questions at gun-safety classes, FOID-card seminars, and community events.

Recommended Actions for Law Enforcement

• Name a “trace coordinator.” One person, along with a designated backup, should manage each eTrace login and status update, to ensure each request is handled properly.
• Bake trace fields into your records management system. If officers are diligent in collecting the make, model and serial number of each firearm at the scene of a crime, evidence records will be complete up front, meaning property clerks will not need to look for missing information at a later stage of the investigation.
• Turnaround targets matter. The statute requires, with minimal exceptions, that agencies submit evidence of their investigation involving recovered firearms within 2 business days; tracking that metric internally pays dividends with prosecutors and grants.
• Utilize grants. BJA’s “Crime Gun Intelligence” and COPS Office technology grants often cover overtime and software integrations. Agencies are encouraged to prepare now to take advantage of all available grants  before the 2026 cycles open.
• Public messaging on firearm storage. Prepare flyers, QR-code posters at hunting-license counters, or even a short PSA on your social media page; these measures can help to address concerns from your residents concerning their responsibilities relative to the new firearm storage requirements.

These new laws impose additional requirements on law enforcement and gun owners while providing tangible benefits. On the enforcement side, every discarded firearm now has to be followed back to its first legal stop, creating a deeper well of leads for detectives statewide. On the prevention side, the State has made clear that if there is a possibility that a child or any individual prohibited from possessing a firearm could gain access to it, the firearm must be securely stored. For municipal leaders, the opportunity lies in turning these statutory requirements into habits, from investigative workflows to community conversations about safe storage.

If you have any questions about this new legislation and how to comply, don’t hesitate to contact us. We can assist in reviewing internal policies to determine if they need to be modified to fulfill the required duties under the new laws.

Citations:

IL Public Act 104-0030: https://www.ilga.gov/Legislation/PublicActs/View/104-0030

IL Public Act 104-0031: https://www.ilga.gov/Documents/Legislation/PublicActs/104/PDF/104-0031.pdf

Authored by:

Zachary Frye