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An assault rifle by its true definition is a select fire weapon capable of full auto function. For example, an M-16 can, with one trigger pull, fire either single-shot, multiple shot or full-auto. An AR-15 (which looks the same cosmetically) can only fire one bullet each time the trigger is pulled (semi-auto).

In the US, to be able to own assault rifles legally, they have to be NFA licensed weapons, and the owner must purchase the appropriate tax stamp from the BATFE. The rifle will have to be purchased/transferred through a Class III dealer.

In 1994, gun control advocates came up with the term "civilian assault rifle", largely as a confusion tactic, as the general public wasn't expected to know the difference between those and a full auto military rifle. The BATFE determined that any detachable magazine rifle with two or more of the following features was was considered a "civilian assault weapon":

  • Pronounced pistol grip
  • Bayonet lug
  • Flash suppressor
  • Grenade launcher (such as the permanently attached type found on the Yugoslav M59/66 SKS variants)
  • Folding or telescoping stock

As the ban was based solely on cosmetic features, it was easy enough to make compliant designs, simply by removing, or having only one of these features. For example, if the rifle had a pronounced pistol grip, and none of the other features, it wasn't considered a 'civilian assault rifle', because it only had a single feature. Eventually, the BATFE determined that muzzle brakes were acceptable, so long as they were permanently attached.

After the sunset of the ban in 2004, the states of New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Cook County, Illinois have kept this ban in their own law books.

California has had such a ban since before the federal ban, and theirs is a much more sweeping ban. Unlike other AWB states, where you can still have a single feature rifle or import a pre-ban rifle, all such firearms had to be registered with the state in 2000, and could not transferred to anyone else within the state.

With the current California laws, you either have to have owned your weapon prior to the 2000 registration, or else you have two options - there's a fixed magazine rifle, in which case, it doesn't meet the definition of a 'civilian assault weapon' (which must have a detachable magazine), and you're allowed all the features you want - or you must have a featureless rifle - no pistol grip or thumbhole stock, no collapsing buttstock, no flash suppressor - California law also bans forward grips.

On top of all that, you also have to ensure that you have an off-list lower receiver. If you wanted to make a California complaint AR-type rifle, a Colt lower would be illegal, as it's listed in the California DOJ ban list, but a Daniels' Defense lower would be perfectly legal, as they're not (yet) listed by the California DOJ.

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