Laws — New York

Restriction tier: profession_gated (most restrictive in US)

Federal baseline (applies to all states)

• 18 USC §931 — prohibits purchase, ownership, or possession of body armor by persons convicted of a violent felony (as defined in 18 USC §16). Max 3 years imprisonment. Affirmative defense: prior written employer certification that the armor was necessary for the safe performance of lawful business activity, with use/possession limited to that performance.

State statutes

NY Senate Bill S9407B (2022)

• Effective: July 6, 2022
• Codification: NY Executive Law §144; NY Penal Law §270.20, §270.21
• Summary: Prohibits the purchase, sale, exchange, giving, or disposition of body armor to any person not engaged or employed in an "Eligible Profession." Eligible Professions are designated by the NY Department of State and include law enforcement, active-duty military, licensed private security, judicial officers, corrections, and others.
• Verification: Purchaser must present proof of Eligible Profession — federal/state/local government professional license, employer-issued employment card or credential, OR a notarized form approved by the NY DOS.
• Face-to-face requirement: Sale or delivery must be completed in person between transferor and transferee. Exception: federal, state, or local government agencies purchasing for employees in eligible professions.
• Penalties: Class A misdemeanor (first offense); Class E felony (subsequent offenses).
• Source: NY DOS Body Armor

Legislative context

Enacted in direct response to the Buffalo, NY supermarket mass shooting (May 14, 2022). Part of a broader package of firearms-and-body-armor legislation signed into law by Gov. Hochul in June–July 2022.

Local ordinances

None identified at city/county level beyond the state law as of 2026-04-14. Flag for monitoring via R0 pipelines.

Recent changes (past 3 years)

• 2022-07-06 — SB S9407B enacted; transformed NY from standard-tier to profession-gated.

Pending / proposed legislation

Monitor NY Senate/Assembly RSS feeds for any expansion, narrowing, or clarification of Eligible Profession definitions.

ArmorOS compliance handling

• Block civilian signups from NY addresses
• Credentialed-buyer flow: Eligible-Profession proof required at onboarding (ID.me for LE/mil/fed; Persona + employer-verification documents for commercial security, judicial, corrections, EMS)
• Face-to-face delivery requirement: work with MFG partner's existing NY-licensed shipping path (most major armor MFGs already have NY-compliant logistics for PD orders)
• Add NY-specific acknowledgment to checkout; log Eligible Profession code with every transaction

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.]