The U.S. House is expected to hold a vote next week on H.J.Res.44, legislation that would overturn the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) pistol brace rule. H.J.Res.44, sponsored by Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) and Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC), is a disapproval resolution under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) that would invalidate ATF’s brace rule and block the agency from reissuing the same rule in the future. The U.S. Senate may consider companion legislation sponsored by Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) shortly thereafter. Please contact your federal legislators today and encourage them to vote “YES” on the disapproval resolution.
ATF’s unlawful rule on stabilizing braces would subject virtually all firearms with attached stabilizing braces to the registration requirements of the National Firearms Act (NFA) – the deadline to register these previously-acquired firearms was Wednesday, May 31, 2023.
Beginning in 2012, when President Biden was serving as then-President Barack Obama’s vice president, the ATF had recognized that stabilizing braces serve a legitimate function, and the inclusion of a stabilizing brace on a pistol or other firearm does not automatically subject that firearm to the provisions of the NFA.
But now, President Biden’s ATF has reversed over a decade of agency guidance and rulings that the firearms industry and law-abiding American gun owners have relied on when designing or acquiring firearms. Stabilizing braces were designed to enable gun owners to operate certain firearms with one hand with more stability. The ATF’s new rule says, essentially, that using a stabilizing brace with a pistol turns the firearm into a short-barreled rifle and must now be regulated by the NFA — and now the millions of Americans who own a pistol and a stabilizing brace, regardless of style, caliber, or type of brace, must either dispose of, alter, or register their firearms. If they don’t comply, they will become felons and face 10 years in prison and large fines.
Again, please take action today by contacting your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators, and encourage them to vote “YES” on the disapproval resolution to overturn ATF’s arbitrary rule.