Nov 6, 2026
The Justice Department has not appealed a Texas court ruling that struck down parts of the 1934 National Firearms Act, allowing Americans to possess silencers, short-barreled rifles and shotguns without federal registration. The decision has left gun control groups concerned while Second Amendment advocates celebrated the development.
A federal judge in Texas ruled that registration and approval requirements for firearm suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns under the National Firearms Act are unconstitutional, following a July 2025 tax reduction to $0 that undermined the law's original tax-based justification from 1934.