Idaho Magazine Capacity Limits: No Restrictions, No Local Bans
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Most Idaho shooters know we're in good shape on magazine restrictions — but a lot of guys at the range don't think past the state line, and that's where it gets expensive.
"Idaho imposes zero restrictions on magazine capacity. No round limit, no registration of high-capacity magazines, no ban on purchase or possession, no grandfathering requirements because there's nothing to grandfather."
Nothing to grandfather is the part worth sitting with. States like Massachusetts and Connecticut have these byzantine pre-ban possession rules where you're essentially playing a legal archaeology game to figure out if your mag is compliant. We don't have that problem here, and it's not an accident — it's the constitutional framework doing exactly what it was written to do.
"The preemption is full, not partial. Per NRA-ILA, no political subdivision can modify firearm regulations beyond what the state has authorized."
Worth knowing if you're heading to a match in Boise versus one outside the city limits. A lot of people assume city councils have some wiggle room on this stuff. They don't. That preemption statute from 2008 closed the door — the discharge carveout is the only thing municipalities kept, and that's reasonable.
"FOPA safe passage is a defense in federal court, not a guarantee you won't be detained. New York and New Jersey have arrested travelers in documented cases."
This is the one people skip over. I've had guys at the cleaning bench tell me they're driving through New Jersey on their way to a match and figure FOPA has them covered. FOPA is a defense you raise after you've already been cuffed. If your route from here to a match on the East Coast clips a magazine-ban state, either swap out your mags before the trip or route around it — because the alternative is explaining your situation from a holding cell.
"Your Idaho rights don't travel with you."
Five words that should be on a sticker at every LGS counter near the travel section. Idaho's framework is solid at home. The moment you cross into Oregon or Colorado with a 30-rounder in your range bag, their law is the only law that matters.
For anyone who's done a road trip to a match or competition in a restriction state — how did you handle the magazine situation, and did you plan it out ahead of time or figure it out on the fly?
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