Virginia attorney general creates firearms enforcement unit

Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones has established a new office unit to investigate firearm manufacturers and dealers and pursue civil enforcement actions when it finds violations of state law.

The Firearms Accountability & Industry Responsibility Unit, known as the FAIR Unit, will enforce the Virginia Firearm Industry Standards of Responsible Conduct. The law requires firearm businesses to maintain reasonable controls over the manufacture, sale, distribution, use and marketing of firearm-related products.

What the FAIR Unit can do

The unit may investigate businesses operating across Virginia. When the attorney general’s office determines that a company has violated the responsible-conduct law, it can file a civil lawsuit.

Through those cases, the office may seek damages, repayment for losses and court orders directing a business to stop certain practices. These are civil enforcement powers; the unit’s announced role centers on company conduct under the state standards.

Jones said the unit is intended to hold manufacturers and dealers accountable for reckless conduct and to address negligent contributions to the illegal movement of firearms in Virginia communities. He presented the office as part of the state’s public-safety response to gun violence, alongside enforcement against people who commit violent acts.

How the policy took effect

The FAIR Unit follows enactment of the Virginia Firearm Industry Standards of Responsible Conduct earlier in 2026. The policy became law after Democrats gained the governorship while retaining control of the General Assembly.

The unit’s work will now depend on the investigations it opens and any civil claims the attorney general files. Individual lawsuits would identify the businesses, alleged conduct and remedies sought by the state.