A federal judge in Texas on Wednesday invalidated provisions of the National Firearms Act, a Depression-era law that regulated firearm suppressors and designated firearms through a tax mechanism. U.S. District Judge James Hendrix determined that without the tax component, the regulatory framework could no longer be sustained, stating that the challenged provisions had been justified under Congress’s taxing power for nearly 90 years but no longer could be.
The decision follows congressional action more than a year earlier when Republicans eliminated a $200 tax on suppressors and related devices as part of a broader tax and spending measure signed by President Donald Trump. Suppressors, also known as silencers, are among the regulated items covered under the 1934 law, along with short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and other firearms classified as particularly dangerous. The ruling could permit firearm owners to purchase these items without registration requirements and remove an additional layer of background check procedures that had accompanied the registration process.
Gun rights advocates characterized the decision as significant progress. The Second Amendment Foundation stated that the ruling could establish precedent for arguments in courts nationwide and allow citizens to exercise Second Amendment rights without government registry placement. The group suggested the decision might generate momentum toward Supreme Court review.
Opponents of the ruling raised safety concerns. Officials at the Giffords Law Center, an organization supporting stricter gun regulations, argued that the registration process had functioned as a heightened background check that also involved notification to local law enforcement. The organization called the ruling a dangerous setback for public safety. According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, more than 6.4 million firearm suppressors were registered in the U.S. in June.
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