The Second Amendment Foundation and National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief on September 22 supporting Supreme Court review of Maine’s 72-hour firearm delivery waiting period. The filing does not suspend the law or mean that the Court has accepted the case. It backs the petition in Beckwith v. Frey, No. 26-258, where firearm buyers, trainers and dealers ask the justices to review a First Circuit decision that vacated a preliminary injunction against the waiting period.

What Maine’s law requires

Maine Revised Statutes Title 25, Section 2016 generally bars a seller from knowingly delivering a firearm until 72 hours after the sale agreement. The period runs concurrently with any waiting period created by a required state or federal background check. The statute took effect August 9, 2024. A first violation is a civil infraction carrying a $200 to $500 fine, while a later violation carries a $500 to $1,000 fine.

The law contains exceptions. It does not apply when a seller knows the buyer is a law-enforcement officer, corrections officer, qualifying security employee or guard, or federally licensed firearm dealer. It also excludes qualifying family transactions, collector-to-collector transfers of curios or relics, antiques, and sales exempt from state or federal background-check requirements. Maine’s published enforcement advisory also says temporary loans and rentals are outside the law. A buyer who immediately clears a background check but does not fit an exception must still wait for the 72-hour period to end.