During a conversation on The Joe Rogan Experience, podcast host Joe Rogan highlighted what he sees as a peculiar quirk in Texas gun laws—the ability to simply hand over a firearm to another person without any paperwork or background checks.
The observation came during an episode featuring guests Steven Rinella and Cameron Hanes, where the discussion touched on various aspects of hunting, firearms, and regional regulations.
Rogan expressed his surprise at discovering that in Texas, if both parties are state residents, one person can legally give a gun to another without filling out any transfer documentation. “In Texas you don’t even have to fill out paperwork,” Rogan explained to his guests. “If you were a Texas resident and I was a Texas resident, I’m like you like that gun, you could have it.”
This casual transfer of firearms stands in stark contrast to regulations in states like California, where Rogan previously resided.
The comedian recounted how during the COVID-19 pandemic and the George Floyd riots, multiple people reached out asking to borrow guns from his collection. “People asked to borrow guns, how many guns do you have, can I have one of your guns?” Rogan said, describing the requests he received during those uncertain times.
While he acknowledged that such lending might be possible in Texas, he emphasized that in California, such arrangements are “absolutely illegal.”
Rogan pointed out the legal distinction between borrowing and purchasing, noting that while you cannot act as a straw purchaser—buying a gun on behalf of someone else who cannot legally purchase one themselves—the gifting of personally owned firearms operates under different rules in Texas.
“You can’t go down and buy, you can’t go down to the FFL, the federal, like you can’t go down to a dealer gun store and buy it and say it’s for you and then give it to someone else, but it’s actually your buddy buying it, right? That you definitely can’t do,” guest Steven Rinella clarified.
However, Rogan explained that if someone legitimately purchased a firearm for themselves and later decided they didn’t want it, they could gift it to a friend in Texas. “In terms of you legitimately went and bought it for yourself and then you decided you did not want it, you can gift that to a friend,” he said. The prohibition is specifically designed to prevent criminals or those barred from gun ownership from using others to acquire firearms on their behalf.
The conversation highlighted the vast differences in firearm regulations across American states. Rogan noted that in California, he would face potential jail time for simply giving someone a gun, as recipients must go through the complete background check and registration process. This shows the ongoing debate about state versus federal gun control measures and the patchwork of regulations that gun owners must navigate depending on their location.