Bills that would lift restrictions on firearms suppressors, as well as short-barreled rifles and shotguns, were stalled in a U.S. House committee this week, leaving gun rights advocates livid.
There was a “firestorm in Washington D.C.” after the House Ways and Means Committee failed to insert two gun-related bills into its budget reconciliation bill, Mark Jones of Buffalo, a national director for Gun Owners of America (GOA), told Cowboy State Daily.
That amounts to Republicans on the committee breaking their campaign promises related to gun rights, Jones said, setting off a flood of criticism from GOA, the National Rifle Association (NRA) and other Second Amendment advocates.
Lifting 91-Year-Old Federal Restrictions
Wyoming’s Republican Congressional delegates, Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis, and Rep. Harriet Hageman, stated on Wednesday that they support the bills.
Hageman isn’t on the House Ways and Means Committee.
She is also co-sponsoring both House bills to lift restrictions on suppressors, commonly called silencers, and short-barreled rifles and shotguns, according to an email statement from her office to Cowboy State Daily.
Those bills include HR 404, the Hearing Protection Act, and HR 2395, the SHORT Act.
Lummis is a co-sponsor of companion bills in the U.S. Senate, according to her office.
The bills would lift restrictions based on the 1934 National Firearms Act (NFA) – which was originally implemented in response to gangsters at the time using such weapons as Thompson submachine guns and sawed-off shotguns.
If those restrictions are lifted, suppressors, as well as some short-barreled rifles and shotguns, could be purchased over-the-counter, with routine background checks.
Under current NFA restrictions, purchasing those items requires buyers to submit fingerprints, undergo an extensive background check and pay for a $200 tax stamp. It sometimes takes weeks, or even months, to complete the process.
Filibuster Fears Unfounded?
Jones said it’s hoped that the outcry from gun rights advocates will pressure members of the House Ways and Means Committee to include the gun bills into the budget reconciliation bill.
One worry raised among Republican members of Congress is that any gun rights-related bills will get shut down by Democrats filibustering them on the Senate Floor, he said.
But inserting the Hearing Protection Act and the Short Act into the budget bill would shield them from a Senate filibuster, Jones said.
That’s why gun rights advocates are upset and baffled by the lack of action by Republicans on the committee – some of whom ran on campaign promises to lift NFA restrictions, Jones said.
Wyoming Delegates Want Restrictions Lifted
In statements emailed from their offices to Cowboy State Daily on Wednesday, Barrasso and Lummis said they remain optimistic that the NFA restrictions will be lifted.
“Every day, people across Wyoming responsibly use our Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms. Washington Democrats continue to use any means possible to try to label responsible gun owners as criminals,” Barrasso said.
“That’s why I support both HR 404 and HR 2395 and their companion bills in the Senate. This legislation will restore our constitutional rights and ensure responsible gun owners in Wyoming are no longer harassed. I will continue to fight against any policies that jeopardize the Second Amendment rights of the people of Wyoming and across the country,” he added.
Lummis said she was working on the Senate side to get NFA restrictions lifted on suppressors.
"I'm working right now on getting legislation related to suppressors included in the Senate reconciliation package,” she said.
“Wyoming gun owners deserve to protect their hearing while exercising their Second Amendment Rights. The federal government needs to fully recognize and restore our constitutional right to bear arms without unnecessary restrictions," Lummis added.
‘Silencers’ Not For Hitmen
A Wyoming firearms expert previously told Cowboy State Daily that restrictions on short-barreled rifles and shotguns “silly” and arbitrary, and Lummis agreed, thus supporting bills to lift the restrictions.
Under the NFA, a short-barreled rifle is defined as a rifle with a barrel less than 16 inches, or any firearm made from a rifle that, as modified, has an overall length less than 26 inches.
A short-barreled shotgun is defined as a shotgun with a barrel or barrels less than 18 inches, or a firearm made from a shotgun with an overall length less than 26 inches or a barrel less than 18 inches.
Likewise, suppressors have an unearned bad reputation, Jones said.
They’re often depicted in movies as tools used by hitmen and assassins to make guns virtually silent – hence the popular term “silencers.”
In reality, they reduce the sound of a firearm to more manageable levels, which can help prevent hearing loss for shooters, Jones said.
They’re becoming increasingly popular among hunters, because they reduce the noise of hunting calibers, and they can also soften the recoil generated by powerful modern hunting rifle cartridges, he added.
He said he finds it ironic that in Europe, hunters can buy suppressors over the counter because “they recognize the hearing health benefits.”
Europeans also appreciate suppressors reducing the noise of rifle shots when hunters are shooting game near farms and villages, Jones said.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
