Laws — California

Restriction tier: state_felon_broader (post AB 92) + crime enhancement

Federal baseline

• 18 USC §931 — violent felons prohibited; employer-authorized affirmative defense.

State statutes

CA Assembly Bill 92 (2023)

• Effective: January 1, 2024 (chaptered September 30, 2023)
• Summary: Prohibits persons who are prohibited from possessing a firearm from purchasing or possessing body armor. Expands the CA felon-prohibition beyond federal §931 to track CA's broader firearm-prohibited-persons list (includes certain misdemeanors, domestic-violence restraining orders, mental-health commitments, drug-addiction findings per CA Welfare & Institutions Code §8103).
• Source: California AB 92 (2023)

CA Penal Code §12022.2

• Effective: January 1, 2022 (enhancement framework long-standing; 2022 refresh)
• Summary: Sentencing enhancement — adds 1–5 years to the sentence of any felon who wears body armor during the commission of a violent offense.
• Source: CA Penal Code §12022.2

Civilian purchase

• Online and in-person purchase both permitted for adults 18+ who are not firearm-prohibited.
• No dealer license required for body armor sales specifically.
• No state records-retention requirement on armor sellers.

Local ordinances

Counties and cities may impose their own restrictions. LA County and SF have shown historic willingness to add local armor restrictions; none currently in effect but monitor via R0 pipelines.

Recent changes (past 3 years)

• 2022-01-01 — PC §12022.2 sentencing enhancement refresh
• 2024-01-01 — AB 92 expanded prohibited-person definition for armor

Pending / proposed legislation

Monitor CA legislature for any armor-sale-tracking or licensing bills.

ArmorOS compliance handling

• Civilian signups permitted for adults 18+
• Run firearm-prohibited-person check against CA AB 92 expanded list (not just federal §931) — requires integration with CA DOJ background-check or vendor check against CA prohibited-persons categories
• Acknowledge PC §12022.2 risk in buyer terms (informational)

Regulations — [STATE]

State agency administrative rules

[Any state-level agency rules implementing armor-related statutes — often from State Police, Dept. of Public Safety, or Department of State.]

Enforcement posture

[How rigorously the state enforces armor statutes, any notable enforcement actions.]

Sources

[AG opinions, state police guidance, state AG website links.]