What to know
- The federal Assault-Style Firearms Compensation Program offers $400–$700 for banned or prohibited firearms, with owners required to dispose of them by Oct. 30, 2026.
- Premiers in Saskatchewan and Alberta have pushed back, calling the program ineffective and exploring ways to avoid cooperating with its enforcement.
- Ford says gun violence is driven by illegal firearms, not hunters or licensed owners, and urges the federal government to focus on bail and sentencing reform instead.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is criticizing a federal government program that offers compensation to citizens who submit unregistered or banned firearms.
As of Monday, Jan. 19, owners of prohibited or classified firearms are able to declare they want to submit or permanently deactivate their guns for a compensation of $400 to $700, as part of the federal government’s Assault-Style Firearms Compensation Program (ASFCP).
Although participation in the program is entirely voluntary, gun owners are required to permanently get rid of their guns by Oct. 30, 2026, at the risk of being criminally liable for illegal possession.
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PREMIERS PUSH BACK
As the program comes into effect this week, several premiers and provincial officials across the country have expressed their discontent with the new measure, with some even seeking ways to avoid being a part of it.
Earlier this week, Saskatchewan Justice Minister and Attorney General Tim McLeod said that the gun buyback program is “disappointing” and ineffective in boosting safety.
“This spring we are advancing amendments to The Saskatchewan Firearms Act to help ensure our affected firearms owners receive compensation for their legally-obtained property that is now prohibited by federal firearms legislation. We will continue to look at all options to protect law-abiding firearms owners, while taking meaningful measures that will actually improve community safety.”
Back in December, Alberta officials also pushed back against the program, introducing a motion under the Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act to defy the measure, and request prosecutors not to enforce it.
“The government is free to enact whatever scheme buyback program they wish. And we’re certainly within our purview not to cooperate with it,” Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery said in a press conference.
FORD VOICES CONCERNS
Speaking with reporters at a press conference on Wednesday about Canada’s EV deal with China, Ford answered media questions about the buyback program and said he supports the other premiers who oppose it.
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“This gun buyback, I stand with my other premiers,” he said. “The No. 1 issue outside of jobs and the economy in every poll I’ve seen is safety. People are scared, people are terrified, and you’re focusing on the wrong group.”
Ford suggested most safety concerns related to guns are linked to illegal firearms “that [are] coming from across the border,” and said he believes hunters and registered gun owners are not the problem.
“Start focusing on the bad guys, not on the good guys, the bad guys. You’re missing the whole point on that,” he said.
“I support legal gun owners, hunters because they’re responsible, they keep their guns locked up, they keep their ammunition separate. They only use their guns when they’re going hunting.”
Meanwhile, the premier urged the feds to instead focus on their Bail and Sentencing Reform Act, a legislation proposed by the government to make sentencing and bail laws stricter. The proposal was first introduced last October, but has yet to be passed.
