GUNSThe Justice Department Lets 90-Year-Old Regulations on Silencers Fade Away

By Chip Brownlee

This story was originally published by The Trace, a nonprofit newsroom covering gun violence in America. Sign up for its newsletters here. The story was published in partnership with Stateline, a nonprofit news outlet that reports on the big challenges that cross state borders.

Silencers and short-barreled firearms like sawed-off shotguns have been heavily regulated under the National Firearms Act for nearly a century. That just changed.

Under the NFA, enacted in 1934, owners of silencers, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and some other atypical weapons were required to register their guns with the federal government and undergo more extensive vetting. On August 5, a federal judge in Texas, James Wesley Hendrix, found the registration requirements unconstitutional and issued an injunction blocking the provision. He gave the Trump administration a week to appeal.

The Justice Department missed that deadline. So on August 13, the special regulations on silencers (also known as suppressors) and short-barreled guns were effectively scrapped for the first time in more than 90 years. 

Gun rights proponents cheered the decision. In Texas, far-right congressional candidate Brandon Herrera — known online as TheAKGuy — was among the first to buy a legal, unregistered silencer just after midnight at an event organized by Gun Owners of America. Hours later, in South Carolina, the National Association for Gun Rights posted a video claiming silencers were “flying off the shelves” at the Greenville store of Palmetto State Armory, one of the plaintiffs in the case.

Though the injunction is effective nationwide, it’s unclear who all it actually applies to. Hendrix limited it to the plaintiffs in the case, their members, and current or future customers. The list of plaintiffs is long and includes more than a dozen manufacturers, retailers, states, and gun rights groups, including GOA, the Firearms Policy Coalition, Palmetto State Armory, Texas State Rifle Association, and SilencerCo Weapons Research. That makes the list of members and customers who are no longer subject to the NFA’s regulation lengthy. 

With that, prospective buyers who are members of one of the groups or purchasing from one of the plaintiff retailers or manufacturers can likely buy a silencer or short-barreled weapon just like any other typical gun. If purchased from a licensed gun store, the purchase requires a federal background check. If from a private, unlicensed seller, there’s no background check required. It’s unclear how state laws that mirror the NFA may affect the legality of a purchase or possession.