Texas Judge Strikes Down Key Provisions of 1930s Firearms Tax Law

U.S. District Judge James Hendrix in Austin ruled that the National Firearms Act (NFA) provisions requiring registration and a $200 tax on suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns are no longer justified now that Congress has eliminated the tax. The decision, issued in the wake of the 2022 tax-elimination bill signed by former President Donald Trump, could permit owners to acquire these items without the registration and heightened background-check process previously enforced under the NFA.

Associated Press

The NFA, enacted in 1934 in response to organized-crime violence, imposed a tax on certain “dangerous” firearms and used registration to verify tax payment. For nearly nine decades the tax and registration were treated as integral to the law’s enforcement. In 2022, Republican lawmakers repealed the $200 tax, prompting legal challenges that argue the tax’s removal invalidates the associated regulatory requirements.

Associated Press

The Second Amendment Foundation hailed the ruling as a precedent for expanding Second Amendment rights nationwide. The Giffords Law Center noted that, while federal background checks remain mandatory, the eliminated registration had functioned as an additional safeguard. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) did not provide comment on the decision.

Associated Press

• “No longer can the challenged NFA provisions be justified — as they have been for nearly 90 years — under Congress’s taxing power,” — James Hendrix, district judge

Associated Press

• “That process effectively functioned as a heightened background check for NFA weapons, and that process is no longer enforceable,” — Counsel Adam Skaggs, law center chief

Associated Press