Republican Governor Bill Lee officially made it harder to sue gun makers in the Volunteer State this week.

On Monday, he signed SB1360 into law after it passed the House by a vote of 72 to 20 and the Senate 26 to 6. That bill explicitly forbids liability lawsuits against industry members where there isn’t a viable claim the company’s actions directly caused the claimed harms. It also requires anyone who tries to enforce an out-of-state judgment against a Tennessee company based on claims the state doesn’t allow to pay the company three times the judgment, as well as refund its legal fees.

“To protect the individual right to keep and bear arms, as guaranteed by both the constitution of this state and the United States Constitution, by fostering a robust marketplace to ensure ready access to arms and accompanying accoutrements, it is the public policy of this state not to allow recovery against a dealer, manufacturer, or seller of a qualified product for qualified civil liability actions or other causes of action resulting from or relating to the criminal or unlawful misuse of qualified products by third parties, public nuisance or market share theories of liability, or any other theory of liability not recognized by the laws of this state,” the law reads.

The law is the latest development in the nationwide fight over gun company liability. That fight has persisted since the 1990s despite Congress passing the Lawful Protection of Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) in 2004, which limits what kind of liability suits can be brought against gun makers. Gun-control activists have worked on ways to pierce the PLCAA’s veil of protection ever since, with some success in cases like the Sandy Hook families’ settlement with Remington.

The Supreme Court is set to weigh in on the PLCAA’s protections this year after hearing a suit the Mexican government brought against American gun makers in March. But the states haven’t waited for action from the High Court to either expand or contract gun company immunity. Blue states have worked to broaden avenues for activists to sue companies under the PLCAA, while Red states have done the opposite.

That movement has contributed to the exodus of gun companies from northern states to southern states over the past decade. Tennessee has collected a number of major gun industry players during that time. Smith & Wesson, Beretta USA, Barrett Firearms, Troy Industries, and several others now call the state home. The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) estimates the gun industry now contributes around 13,500 jobs, with $3.7 billion in total economic activity, and $7.5 million in tax revenue to Tennessee.

The trade group cheered SB1360 as a win for lawful manufacturers.

“Governor Lee, and Tennessee’s lawmakers, are sending a clear message that gun control lawfare targeted against our industry, which is vital to Tennessee’s economy and the nation’s heritage of Second Amendment freedoms, will not be tolerated,” Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF Senior Vice President, said in a statement. “Governor Lee’s commitment to the lawful commerce in arms and free exercise of the rights to keep and bear arms in Tennessee is demonstrated by the growth of firearm manufacturers moving to the state to grow their businesses.”

The National Rifle Association said the act “protects the firearm industry from civil liability when their products are criminally misused by third parties, making Tennessee a more attractive environment for firearm-related businesses.”

Meanwhile, gun-control advocates slammed the bill, going so far as to say its supporters have “blood on their hands.” Everytown for Gun Safety claimed the law makes it nearly impossible to sue gun makers over the misuse of their products because plaintiffs would have to “present clear and convincing evidence that the gun company or dealer is not immune,” which “effectively shields gun makers and sellers from being held liable—even when their negligence or misconduct causes real harm.”

“We are sick and tired of hearing excuses from our lawmakers. Clearly, they are willing to protect the gun lobby, but they’re not willing to protect our children from gun violence,” Kristen Stirling, a volunteer with the Tennessee chapter of Everytown affiliate Moms Demand Action, said in a statement. “Instead of trying to pass life-saving gun safety measures that could protect our state from senseless violence, lawmakers are once again devoting all of their energy towards making sure the gun industry is never held accountable for the blood on their hands. They’re not just failing us — they’re complicit.”

The law will go into effect on July 1st, 2025.