AR 190-14: Use of Force, Privately Owned Firearms, and DD 2760

Army Regulation 190-14, titled “Carrying of Firearms and Use of Force for Law Enforcement Security Duties,” is the Department of the Army regulation that sets the rules for arming military and civilian personnel who perform law enforcement or security duties on Army installations, governs how those personnel may use force, and establishes the registration system for privately owned firearms and other restricted property brought onto posts.¹

What the Regulation Covers

AR 190-14 addresses two closely linked subjects: authorizing personnel to carry firearms for official law enforcement and security functions, and setting the rules on when and how they may use force. Alongside those core subjects, it governs the registration of restricted property on Army installations, including privately owned firearms and pets, and the permitting of restricted activities such as hunting and fishing on Army land.²

The regulation’s legal authority runs from 10 U.S.C. § 3013, which makes the Secretary of the Army responsible for organizing, training, and equipping the Army. AR 190-14 is the Army’s implementation of a broader Pentagon policy, DoD Directive 5210.56, “Arming and the Use of Force.”²

How It Fits Under DoD Directive 5210.56

DoD Directive 5210.56 sets department-wide standards that each military service must meet and caps the level of authority needed to approve different categories of firearms carry. Every military department has to publish supplemental guidance, and that guidance must be reviewed by legal counsel for consistency with the directive.³

The directive assigns approval authorities by rank. An O-4 (major or equivalent) may authorize open carry of government-issued firearms for official duties. Concealed carry of government-issued firearms requires an O-6 (colonel or equivalent). Carrying a privately owned firearm on DoD property in connection with official duties requires approval from a service secretary, service chief, or agency director. Carrying a privately owned firearm for personal protection unrelated to official duty requires approval from at least an O-5 (lieutenant colonel or equivalent).⁴

All armed personnel must be trained in specific Rules for the Use of Force. Among those rules: an oral warning must be given before deadly force is used, provided the warning would not unreasonably increase the danger to personnel.³

The Use-of-Force Continuum

Personnel operating under AR 190-14 and its implementing guidance are expected to use the minimum force necessary, taking into account the nature and seriousness of the offense. Command-level regulations that implement the Army policy, such as USFK Regulation 190-50, lay out a graduated continuum:⁵

Verbal persuasion, the first and preferred response.
Unarmed defense techniques, meaning physical control without weapons.
Chemical aerosol irritant projectors, such as pepper spray, subject to local or host-nation restrictions.
Impact weapons such as batons.
Military working dogs, employed under separate regulations.
Presentation of deadly force capability, meaning drawing or displaying a firearm.
Deadly force, subject to strict rules and reporting requirements.

Handcuffing and restraints are separately classified as a use of force and are limited to temporary application during apprehension to protect personnel, protect the person detained, or prevent escape. Launched electrode stun devices, commonly known by the brand name Taser, have been folded into the framework as well.⁵

Privately Owned Firearms on Army Installations

Most of the public debate around AR 190-14 concerns whether service members can bring their own guns onto post. Historically, the answer has been no, absent specific authorization. Personal weapons had to be registered, stored securely, and carried only with senior-commander approval, and state-issued concealed-carry permits were generally not recognized on federal military installations.

The 1992 Baseline

The restriction traces to a Pentagon directive issued on February 25, 1992, which formalized a department-wide policy to “limit and control the carrying of firearms by DOD military and civilian personnel.” Authorization was to be issued “only to qualified personnel when there is a reasonable expectation that life or DOD assets will be jeopardized if firearms are not carried.”⁶ Before 1993, base commanders had wider discretion to set their own firearms rules; the new policy pulled that authority upward and standardized restrictions across installations.⁷

How Installations Have Implemented It

Each installation implements AR 190-14 and the DoD directive through local regulations. The Fort Bragg (now Fort Liberty) regulation is a representative example. It states that the installation is federal property and that state-issued concealed handgun permits “are not recognized or valid” there. Concealed carry on post is prohibited. Firearms transported on the installation must be unloaded, registered, and stored either in an inaccessible vehicle compartment or in plain sight in a closed case. Ammunition must be transported separately from the weapon.⁸

The one narrow exception at Fort Bragg allows a person with a valid North Carolina concealed handgun permit to carry a weapon while directly traversing the installation on public highways, provided they do not pass through an access control point and do not stop on post. Service members who violate the rules face judicial or non-judicial action under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Civilians face prosecution in U.S. Magistrate Court and can be barred from the installation.⁸

The 2015 Chattanooga Response

After the July 2015 attack on military facilities in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter directed on October 2, 2015 that qualified personnel at stand-alone facilities be armed. The Army implemented that decision by publishing HQDA Execution Order 011-16 on October 9, 2015, followed by five supplemental fragmentary orders through April 2017.⁴

DoD Directive 5210.56 was reissued in November 2016 with expanded authorities for privately owned firearms. As of 2019, the Secretary of the Army had not yet published formal implementing guidance for the reissued directive, and the EXORD and its fragmentary orders remained the operative Army-level authority in the interim. Outside law enforcement and security personnel already operating under existing authorities, most Army personnel still could not be armed on installations.⁴

The 2026 Hegseth Memo

In April 2026, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed a memo titled “Non-Official Personal Protection Arming on Department of War Property.” It directs base commanders to accept requests from service members to carry privately owned firearms with a “presumption of approval.” Any denial must be issued in writing with a detailed, objective, and individualized explanation.⁹

The memo cites Section 526 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 as its legal basis and tasks the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security with updating DoD Manual 5200.08, the department’s physical security manual, to reflect the new policy. Personal carry inside the Pentagon itself is prohibited, but the Pentagon Force Protection Agency must allow service members to store privately owned firearms in vehicles on the Pentagon Reservation.¹⁰

Registration and Permit Records

AR 190-14 underpins the Army’s registration and permit system for restricted property and activities on installations. The associated Privacy Act system of records, designated A0190-14 OPMG and titled “Registration and Permit Files,” covers anyone registering restricted property or applying for permission to conduct a restricted activity on an Army post. Restricted property includes privately owned firearms and weapons as well as pets. Restricted activities include hunting and fishing.²

Records include registration forms and permit applications and capture the individual’s name and Social Security Number. The stated purpose is to help commanders carry out “effective law enforcement, troop safety, and crime prevention programs.”²

Information in these files may be shared with criminal justice agencies outside the Department of Defense for investigation and prosecution. Authorized recipients include the FBI, U.S. Customs, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, U.S. District Courts, U.S. Magistrates, state and local law enforcement, wildlife conservation agencies, public health agencies, and overseas host-government law enforcement. Records are destroyed when the restricted property is removed from the installation or the permit expires.¹

DD Form 2760 and the Lautenberg Check

DoD Directive 5210.56 requires all personnel who carry firearms to complete DD Form 2760, “Qualification to Possess Firearms or Ammunition.” The form certifies that the individual does not have a qualifying domestic violence conviction that would disqualify them from possessing firearms or ammunition under the Lautenberg Amendment, 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9).¹¹

Under Army Regulation 600-20, soldiers must complete DD Form 2760 before receiving permanent change of station orders. Personnel in positions that require them to carry firearms have a continuing obligation to inform their commanders if they later obtain a qualifying conviction.¹¹

1
Defense Privacy, Civil Liberties, and Transparency Division. A0190-14 OPMG
2
GovInfo. System of Records Notice A0190-14 OPMG
3
Executive Services Directorate. DoD Directive 5210.56
4
The Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School. Welcome to the Wild West
5
U.S. Forces Korea. USFK Regulation 190-50
6
The Christian Science Monitor. Fort Hood Shooting: Could Armed Soldiers on Base Prevent Tragedy
7
WAMU. Should Soldiers Be Armed at Military Posts
8
U.S. Army Fort Liberty. XVIII Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg Regulation 190-11-1
9
PBS NewsHour. Hegseth Says He Will Allow Troops to Take Personal Weapons Onto Military Bases
10
Air Force Life Cycle Management Center. Hegseth Authorizes Off-Duty Service Members to Carry Private Firearms on Installations
11
Department of Defense Inspector General. DODIG-2015-078