Since 1991, the use of lead shot for waterfowl has been banned nationwide.

The ban on the use of lead shot for hunting waterfowl was phased-in starting with the 1987-88 hunting season. The ban became nationwide in 1991. Nontoxic shot regulations apply only to waterfowl, defined as the family Anatidae (ducks, geese, [including brant], and swans) and coots. Nontoxic shot is defined as any shot type that does not cause sickness and death when ingested by migratory birds.

Instead, hunters must use shot composed of non-lead, non-toxic materials. Among the allowed shot types are: steel (iron), bismuth-tin alloy, iron-tungsten, iron-tungsten-nickel, copper-clad iron, corrosion-inhibited copper, and a variety of tungsten-based shot types (for example tungsten-bronze, tungsten-matrix, tungsten-polymer, tungsten-iron-copper-nickel, tungsten-tin-iron, tungsten-tin-bismuth, and tungsten-tin-iron-nickel, depending on the formulation).

Coatings on approved shot types — such as copper, nickel, tin, zinc, or zinc-chrome, as well as some polymer coatings — are also legal, provided the underlying shot material is one of the USFWS-approved non-toxic types.