The rules will limit people who wouldn't pass a background check from bringing guns purchased in other states back to Connecticut.
This week President Barack Obama announced new executive action to tighten gun control in the United States, but what will the proposed changes mean for Connecticut?
Obama's proposal calls for increased scrutiny of so-called gun-seller "hobbyists," gun dealers who aren't licensed, but sell or transfer weapons person-to-person or via the Internet without conducting background checks.
Inside Connecticut's borders, that's not an issue. In order to sell any gun in the state, a background check is required and the purchaser also needs a permit issued by state police.
According to Mike Lawlor, the state's undersecretary for criminal justice policy and planning, about 226,000 people carry gun permits in Connecticut -- or around six percent of the state's adult population.
If a gun is given to another person, Lawlor said the recipient still needs a permit, and it's a felony if the transfer isn't recorded with the state.
Lawlor said Obama's new rule would make it so anybody who "makes a living" selling guns in the U.S. would need to be licensed and perform background checks.
"The closing of that loophole elsewhere in the country will help Connecticut because many people drive to other states, buy guns, and come back here," Lawlor said, "because they could never pass a background check in Connecticut."
Obama called on legislators to approve funding for 200 new ATF agents to enforce the tightened regulations, but it's still an open question whether the Republican-controlled congress will approve the request.
