CHICAGO (NEWSnet/AP) — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has signed a law that bans firearms advertising that officials determine produces a public safety threat or appeals to children or people likely to use the weapons illegally.

On Saturday, Pritzker signed the Firearm Industry Responsibility Act, making Illinois the eighth state to approve legislation that limits legal protection for firearms manufacturers or distributors.

Pritzker signed the bill alongside lawmakers and gun control advocates at “Gun Sense University,” an annual training conference of more than 2,000 Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action volunteers and survivors, hosted by Everytown for Gun Safety.

The law goes into effect immediately.

State Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, the bill's House sponsor, said any companies participating in “depicting guns as tools for carnage" will face serious penalties.

Opening the door to such court challenges is part of ongoing efforts by Democratic lawmakers in Illinois and elsewhere to eliminate gun violence, made more complicated by the U.S. Supreme Court’s expansion of gun rights, in 2022. Pritzker also signed a ban on semi-automatic weapons in early 2023. Gun-rights advocates continue to challenge that law in federal court.

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