West Virginia’s HB 4169 sets a firmer timeline for people seeking to regain gun rights after certain mental-health findings. The signed law requires a mental-health exam completed within 30 days before a restoration petition is filed, specifies which licensed providers may certify it, and tells the state to update records and notify federal background-check systems after approval.
That keeps the petition tied to a recent clinical judgment, not an old assessment that may no longer reflect the person’s condition. If a judge grants relief, the person’s name would come off the state mental health registry and the federal background-check system would be updated as well.
A shorter window before the court will listen
The bill narrows the timing more than the diagnosis. Someone seeking restoration would still need a qualifying professional to say the person meets the standard, but the report could not be stale.
Available vote records show the bill advanced without recorded no votes.
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