California AB 2047 makes 3d printers off-limits to students, educators, business

# Stop AB2047 - California's bill that pulls 3D printers from schools and businesses Source: [https://www.the3dprintingnerd.com/ab2047](https://www.the3dprintingnerd.com/ab2047) CAUnderstanding AB2047 [Take action](https://www.the3dprintingnerd.com/ab2047#urgent)## A Letter From the Industry The letter🔍 Click to read full letter Organizational Signatories10 organizations PRUSA Research Printed Solid MAKE Magazine Maker Faire West3D Nikko Industries VORON Design 3D Printing Nerd Cocoa Press Greengate3D Individual Signatories7 individuals Dr\. Adrian Bowyer Josef Prusa Dale Dougherty Maksim Zolin Joel Telling Anne Pauley Clayton Parker \(Uncle Jessy\)  ## California*AB 2047*makes printers off\-limits to students, educators and business\. **AB2047**requires every 3D printer sold in California to run a DOJ state\-certified "detection algorithm" \- a technology that can not reliably exist\. If passed, it would pull a tool used in**thousands of schools, libraries, labs, and small businesses**out from under our communities\. This page is a plain\-language guide you can share with your school board, PTA, or neighbor\. At a glance What's at stake in California K\-12, CTE, Summer & After School programs Students who depend on access 1\.5M\+ Small & Large business, labs, manufacturers California operations affected 30,000\+ Engineering, innovation & curriculum built in CA Investment at risk in the state $10\.5B 1 ### Email*every*committee member One email can reach every committee office plus the legislative staff who handle these bills\. Copy the full list, paste it into the**BCC**field so offices don't see each other's addresses, and send a single message\. Suggested subject:**Please vote NO on AB 2047**\. Tip: paste into**BCC**, not To\. 2 ### Better yet,*call*their offices A ringing phone in a Capitol office is hard to ignore \- calls often carry more weight than email\. No script needed: give your name, say you're a Californian, and urge a**NO vote on AB 2047**\. Tap any number to call that office directly\. Judiciary Committee13 members · main line \(916\) 651\-4113 Roger NielloR\-06Vice\-Chair Anna CaballeroD\-14Both committees Suzette Martinez ValladaresR\-23 Scott WienerD\-11Both committees Public Safety Committee6 members · main line \(916\) 651\-4118 Kelly SeyartoR\-32Vice\-Chair Anna CaballeroD\-14Both committees Scott WienerD\-11Both committees Scroll for the full list\.**Anna Caballero**and**Scott Wiener**sit on both committees, so the email list above counts each of them once\. 3 ### Write in*your own words*\- here are the points that matter Personal letters from real Californians carry far more weight than form letters\. Pick the points that matter to you and tell them why, in your voice: - The bill**does not make anyone safer\.** - The bill was**rushed and now contradicts itself**\- after 33 amendments, its manufacturer mandate points to certification rules the same amendment deleted\. - The required technology**is not possible**\- 3D printers read code, not intent; they cannot tell what a shape is for\. - The bill requires software that, if it could exist, would**violate the First Amendment\.** - It**disrupts education**at every level \- K\-12, CTE, libraries, community colleges, and universities\. - It**breaks open\-source 3D printing**, which most classroom printers rely on, by demanding open firmware be as locked\-down as proprietary firmware\. - California**small businesses bear the burden**\- they must source or build firearm\-blocking software that does not exist just to keep selling printers\. - The**penalties hit the wrong people**\- the $25,000\-per\-violation fines fall on schools, makers, and small businesses, while bad actors route around the law\. - The**exemptions are undefined**\- the bill exempts printers sold "exclusively" to entertainment studios, but no printer is built for one industry, leaving makers and cosplayers out\. Engage ## Things you can do*today*\. Legislators weigh messages from the people they represent most of all \- so if you live in California, your own Senator and Assembly Member need to hear from you\. But every informed voice adds to the pressure, in California and beyond\. Each of these takes five minutes or less\. Do one today\. Do all three this week\. Why it doesn't work ## What the bill*can't solve*\. AB2047 rests on two foundations that cannot bear its weight: the legal foundation conflicts with established First Amendment law, and the technical foundation assumes capabilities that do not reliably exist\. 12 Legal Violations Constitutional & statutory concerns 01 #### Prior restraint on protected speech CAD files and source code are protected expression; mandatory pre\-review is a textbook prior restraint\. 02 #### Compelled speech Forcing manufacturers to attest to contested algorithm output is compelled speech on a public concern\. 03 #### Vagueness in "blueprint" Shapes shared between firearm parts and countless legitimate objects give no clear notice of prohibited conduct\. 04 #### Overbreadth The bill sweeps in general\-purpose hardware used overwhelmingly for lawful purposes\. 05 #### Commerce Clause concerns A state\-specific approved list for interstate hardware raises serious Dormant Commerce Clause issues\. 06 #### Federal preemption Federal law already covers firearm manufacture, including via additive manufacturing\. \+ #### Six more concerns detailed Delegation, due process, Fourth Amendment telemetry, and state constitutional issues\. 12\+ Technical Failures Why the tech can't actually work 01 #### Geometry isn't uniquely a firearm A rifled barrel is a grooved cylinder\. So are industrial screws, optical mounts, and thousands of other parts\. 02 #### Trivial workarounds Rotation, scaling, splitting a model into parts, or re\-exporting defeats shape\-based detection \- without losing function\. 03 #### G\-code is the wrong layer By the time a printer sees G\-code, shape context is gone\. Reconstructing a "firearm" at print time is intractable\. 04 #### Firmware is open Marlin, Klipper, and RepRap firmware can be flashed in minutes\. Software\-level "blocks" are simply removable\. 05 #### No ground\-truth dataset There is no authoritative dataset of "firearm blueprints" \- and the set grows adversarially\. 06 #### Published error rates are too high Research on shape\-based detection consistently shows error rates incompatible with general\-purpose use\. \+ #### Six more technical barriers Remote\-print workflows, procedural generation, encrypted slicer output, multi\-material composites, and more\. Bill progress ## Where it stands*right now*\. AB2047 cleared the Assembly's Public Safety, Judiciary, and Appropriations committees, survived the Suspense File, and has now**passed the full Assembly floor**with**33 amendments**\. It moves next to the**State Senate**, where it heads first to the**Judiciary**and**Public Safety**committees \- the stage where your voice matters most right now\.[Take action now →](https://www.the3dprintingnerd.com/ab2047#urgent) FebruaryIntroduced #### Bill IntroducedCompleted AB2047 is introduced in the California State Assembly, framed as a public safety measure targeting 3D\-printed firearms\. MarchPublic Safety #### Passed Public Safety CommitteeCompleted The bill cleared the Assembly Public Safety Committee and was advanced for further review\. AprilJudiciary #### Passed Judiciary CommitteeCompleted The bill cleared the Assembly Judiciary Committee and was advanced to Appropriations\. MayAppropriations #### Appropriations & Suspense FileCompleted The bill cleared the Assembly Appropriations Committee, was placed in the Suspense File, and has now been released with**33 amendments**and sent to the floor\. MayAssembly Floor #### Passed the Assembly FloorCompleted The full Assembly voted to pass the amended bill, sending it across to the State Senate for the second half of the process\. NowSenate Committees #### Senate Judiciary & Public SafetyActive now The bill now goes to the Senate's Judiciary and Public Safety committees\. These members decide whether it advances \- so they are exactly who needs to hear from you today\.[Email the Senate →](https://www.the3dprintingnerd.com/ab2047#urgent) TBDSenate Floor #### Senate Floor VoteUpcoming If it clears committee, the full Senate votes on the bill\. TBDFinal #### Governor's DeskUpcoming The Governor's signature or veto\. The bill can be stopped at any stage\. 3D Printing Nerd ## Watch the*full breakdown*\. Joel Telling \(3D Printing Nerd\) walks through AB2047, what it means for the maker community, and why the technical premise doesn't hold up\. In the news ## The story is*spreading*\. Coverage of AB2047 and the maker community's response from across the tech press\.