Sen. Everitt files bill in North Carolina Senate to regulate firearms and enhance public safety

A new bill filed by State Sen. Everitt seeks to enhance public safety by strengthening firearm regulations in North Carolina, according to the North Carolina State Senate.

The bill, filed as SB 633 on March 25 during the 2025 regular session, was formally listed with the short title: ‘Guarding Freedoms & Public Safety Act.’

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill aims to enhance public safety and firearm regulation in North Carolina through several measures. It prohibits individuals convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence from purchasing or possessing firearms, effective Dec. 1, 2025. The bill also requires universal background checks for all firearm sales, including private transfers, with specified exemptions, effective Oct. 1, 2025. It reinstates the previous pistol purchase permit law, effective the same date, applicable to pistol transactions. Additionally, the bill mandates that parents or guardians of public school students certify the safe storage of firearms in their homes before each school year, effective for the 2025-26 academic year. Prosecutions for offenses committed before these effective dates remain unaffected by the new provisions.

Of the three sponsors of this bill, Lisa Grafstein proposed the most bills (65) during the 2025 regular session.

Bills in North Carolina follow a multi-step process before becoming law. A lawmaker starts by filing a bill, which is assigned to a committee for review. The bill must be read three times in each chamber. If one chamber changes the bill after the other passes it, both must agree on the final version. Once both chambers approve the same bill, it goes to the governor, who has 10 days (or 30 if the legislature is not in session) to sign, veto, or let it become law without a signature.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.

Everitt graduated from Rutgers University in 1997 with a BA and again in 2001 from Columbus School of Law with a JD.

Everitt, a Democrat, was elected to the North Carolina State Senate in 2025 to represent the state’s 18th Senate district, replacing previous state senator Mary Wills Bode.