GOP Representatives Introduce Bill Eliminating Paper Trail and Federal Tax on Firearm Suppressors

Representatives Jeff Duncan (R-SC-3) and John Carter (R-TX-31) introduced legislation on January 9 that will eliminate the paper trail and federal tax on firearm suppressors.

Suppressors are currently regulated under the National Firearms Act (1934) and thereby require law-abiding purchasers to go through the burdensome process of being photographed and fingerprinted.

The regulations also require the would-be purchaser to undergo a background check, register the device with the federal government, and pay the federal government a $200 tax. The process takes approximately six months–and all of this for a device that is not even a firearm.

In fact, during an interview on the December 5, 2016, episode of Bullets with AWR Hawkins, the discussion with former Congressman Matt Salmon (R-AZ-5) revolved around the way laws are so jumbled that it is actually easier to get a gun than it is to get a silencer to put on the gun.

So Duncan and Carter have put forward legislation to change the onerous purchasing process for suppressors. Their legislation would move suppressors outside of the NFA’s purview, “replacing the federal transfer process with a National Instant Criminal Background Check.” This would streamline the process of purchasing a suppressor, making it more convenient for gun owners and hunters in the 42 states where the use of suppressors is legal.

The NRA-ILA’s Chris Cox said, “Gun owners and sportsmen should be able to practice their sport with the tools necessary to do so safely. This bill makes it easier for them to do that.”

AWR Hawkins is the Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and host of Bullets with AWR Hawkins, a Breitbart News podcast. He is also the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him directly at awrhawkins@breitbart.com.