House Passes Bill to Nullify ATF Pistol Brace Rule

The measure is likely to fail in the Senate

A pistol stabilizing brace. Michael Clements/The Epoch Times

The House of Representatives approved a bill to nullify a controversial rule from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) regulating pistol stabilizing braces. The measure will now proceed to the Democrat-controlled Senate, where it’s expected to fail.

President Joe Biden has said he will veto the bill if it clears the Senate.

House Joint Resolution 44, a bill to nullify the pistol brace rule under the Congressional Review Act (CRA), passed the House by a vote of 219–210, with five representatives not voting.

Of the Republicans, 217 voted for the bill, Reps. Thomas Kean (R-N.J.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) voted no, and Reps. Michael Turner (R-Ohio), Anthony D’Esposito (R-N.Y.), and Brad Finstad (R-Minn.) didn’t vote.

Early morning fog envelopes the U.S. Capitol dome behind the U.S. House of Representatives on Nov. 4, 2022. Samuel Corum/Getty Images

On the Democrat side, 208 voted no, Reps. Jared Golden (D-Maine) and Mary Peltola (D-Alaska) voted yes, and Reps. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) and Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) didn’t vote.

The CRA allows Congress to disapprove rules by passing a bill in both chambers and having the president sign it into law.

Members of Congress Weigh In

During a hearing the day before the House vote, Rules Committee Chair Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) told Ranking Member James McGovern (D-Mass.), who opposed the bill, that he could rest easy.

“There’s a Democratic Senate and a Democratic president, so I wouldn’t worry too much about what’s passed into law,” Cole said. “American democracy’s inherently chaotic from time to time, but we usually get to the right place.”

During the floor debate, Republicans said the ATF was trampling on the rights of disabled veterans by requiring the pistol braces be registered under the National Firearms Act of 1934 and the Gun Control Act of 1968. They pointed out that the ATF had changed its stance on the rule several times and that Congress never considered or passed any laws concerning the devices.

Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas) said the rule is an unconstitutional usurpation of congressional legislative authority. He repeated the claim that the ATF turned millions of law-abiding citizens into felons “with the stroke of a pen.”

“This ATF rule is an affront against the rights of the American citizen and an assault on the Second Amendment and must be defeated,” Hunt said.

In a statement released after the vote, freshman Rep. Josh Brecheen (R-Okla.) denounced the rule as ungrateful to veterans.

“The rule disrespects disabled veterans who rely on stabilizing support in order to safely exercise their Second Amendment rights. I was proud to vote in favor of Congressman Andrew Clyde’s resolution to nullify this rule and stand up for the Constitution, veterans, and law-abiding gun owners across the country,” Brecheen’s statement reads.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, delivers remarks during a committee meeting in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington on Jan. 31, 2023. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Democrats have repeatedly invoked mass shootings in their arguments. Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) claimed that a pistol brace increases a weapon’s lethality by making the gun more accurate.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) said that if a foreign government killed Americans as people using pistol braces have in certain mass shootings, the United States would declare war on that government.

“[Republicans] say that the Second Amendment must be respected in this strange and distorted way, because they believe the Second Amendment gives the people the right to overthrow the government,” he said.

“We don’t want to repeal the Second Amendment; we want them to read the Second Amendment.”

Judges Have Issued Injunctions

On Jan. 13, the ATF issued criteria to determine whether the pistol stabilizing brace converted pistols into short-barreled rifles, which are regulated by the National Firearms Act of 1934 and the Gun Control Act of 1968.

Under the National Firearms Act, a short-barreled rifle has “a rifled barrel under 16 inches in length or [is] a smooth-bore firearm with a barrel under 18 inches in length.” In 2012, companies began selling braces designed to stabilize heavy pistols for a steadier aim by the disabled, elderly, and others who need assistance.

That rule went into effect on Jan. 31.

At that time, the ATF set a 120-day amnesty period during which owners of pistols equipped with the devices could register them without paying the $200 National Firearms Act tax. The amnesty period expired on May 31. Owners of the devices could be charged with a felony and face up to 10 years in prison, $250,000 in fines, or both for each violation.

By the June 1 deadline, more than 250,000 braces had been registered with the ATF. Estimates on how many gun owners are affected range from 3 million to 40 million.

Since then, several lawsuits have been filed, and federal judges have issued injunctions for people covered as parties to the legal actions.

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an injunction just before the deadline protecting Firearms Policy Coalition members and Maxim Defense customers from the rule.

Judges also issued injunctions in a lawsuit filed by the Second Amendment Foundation (pdf) and another by Gun Owners of America, the Gun Owners Foundation, and the State of Texas (pdf).