The Trump administration has yet to file an appeal following a judge's ruling last week that parts of the 1934 National Firearms Act (NFA) are no longer valid. The judge had given the administration a seven-day window to mount an emergency appeal, but that period has passed without action, allowing the ruling to take effect.

The NFA, which established a $200 fee to transfer or manufacture certain firearms, now faces regulatory uncertainty. Gun control groups have expressed alarm, warning that the Department of Justice (DOJ) may be abandoning its defense of the law amid pressure from Republicans and Second Amendment advocates.

"Today, our government is failing us," said Brady President Kris Brown. "At midnight, uniquely lethal weapons and devices — including silencers, short-barreled rifles, and shotguns — were deregulated for the first time in nearly a century. The Department of Justice had the opportunity to act to protect our safety, but it failed to do so."

A DOJ letter stated, "An appeal would prolong regulatory uncertainty for law-abiding gun owners and businesses and would consume DOJ resources defending a position that this Congress and now a federal district court has said cannot stand."

Meanwhile, Everytown for Gun Safety President John Feinblatt urged Attorney General Blanche to appeal the ruling, calling it dangerous.

The situation remains fluid as the DOJ still has time to appeal, but the current silence has left gun policy in limbo across the United States.

Sources