SB Tactical Responds to Proposed Regulations on Firearms with Stabilizing Braces

Via SB Tactical Press Release:

“SB Tactical® learned on December 16 of the ATF’s plan to publish their proposed ‘Objective Factors for Classifying Weapons with Stabilizing Braces’ guidance on https://www.federalregister.gov/d/2020-27857, which will be open for comment on Friday, December 18, 2020 until January 1, 2021. Our hope was that ATF would finally take transparent action to provide clear criteria for brace equipped pistols, that would give manufacturers and consumers a way to see if products met ATF’s shifting expectations. Instead, the document is a thinly veiled blueprint for the largest firearm registration — and ultimately potentially confiscation — scheme in U.S. history.

The factors identified by the ATF for its possible use in classification include type, caliber, weight and length, how the gun is marketed, length of pull, sights and scopes, peripheral accessories mounted, and rear surface area of the brace, among others. While the factors listed are arbitrary and open-ended, the truly onerous part of the proposal is that no definitions of the factors are provided.The grotesque inadequacies of this document render this “guidance” worse than meaningless.

By stating that “no single factor or combination of factors is necessarily dispositive,” the regulated public is left guessing. Which calibers are ok? What is the weight or length of pull limit? What accessories can be mounted on a pistol? By failing to define the criteria, the ATF is codifying its holistic “we’ll know it when we see it” approach to determinations that create confusion and serve as little more than a power grab. It does nothing other than create uncertainty and confirm that ATF does not want to be held accountable. It claims limitless power to assess products under a “holistic” approach that gives the agency maximum discretion and Americans minimum protection.

This proposed guidance says that it does not have the effect and force of law . . . yet. SB Tactical®, in conjunction with the Firearms Regulatory Accountability Coalition, Inc., (FRAC), and the National Rifle Association, will continue to work tirelessly with congressional leadership, the White House, and the Department of Justice to ensure that legal gun owners’ rights and the rights of manufacturers are not in jeopardy. We believe that the White House is considering weighing in on this issue, but they will not do so unless we make our voices heard.

The time is now to come together as a community of gun owners, retailers, and manufacturers to demand that President Trump preserve our Second Amendment rights.This is our last chance to get this administration to intervene. We strongly urge you to contact the White House to demand they take swift action to stop and reverse ATF’s efforts to issue arbitrary and capricious decisions affecting millions of legal gun owners.“

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