The House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force urged President Joe Biden to “take strong executive action” to address rifle-style pistols, a class of firearms that has gained popularity in the last few years.
The group of Democratic lawmakers demanded the president place “concealable assault-style firearms that fire rifle rounds” under the National Firearms Act, a move that would likely make the sale and transfer of the guns in question more difficult, in a letter on Wednesday. The NFA tightly regulates short-barreled rifles, which are long guns with a barrel length shorter than 16 inches.
In order to buy one, a person must register that firearm with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and pay a $200 tax. Gun manufacturers for years have been selling guns that have barrel lengths shorter than 16 inches, but they are equipped with pistol braces, which allow a shooter to stabilize his or her arm while firing, making the gun a handgun in the eyes of the ATF. This helps to avoid the registration hassle and fee to obtain a similar firearm.
The alleged gunman in Boulder, Colorado, Ahmad al Aliwi Alissa, 21, purportedly used a Ruger AR-15-style pistol with a 10.5-inch barrel to kill 10 people, including one police officer, earlier in the month. The House Democrats, who used the tragedy as an example, posited that certain firearms “pose an unreasonable threat to our communities.”
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“The concealability and ability to use ammunition capable of penetrating body armor make these firearms especially dangerous on our streets and for law enforcement personnel,” the lawmakers wrote in the letter, which received over 100 signers. “We thank you for your commitment to preventing gun violence and urge you to immediately promulgate regulations to cover these concealable assault firearms under the National Firearms Act.”
The lawmakers argued that reclassifying the weapon under the NFA would be effective by forcing prospective gun owners to endure rigorous safety checks prior to purchase.
“The National Firearms Act has proven to be extremely effective in preventing crimes with the classes of particularly dangerous firearms it regulates through a system requiring a background check, submission of photo identification and fingerprints, and registration of the firearm with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF),” they continued.
The Gun Owners of America, one of the largest pro-Second Amendment groups in the country, told the Washington Examiner that the bid by House Democrats is “asinine,” adding that short-barreled rifles shouldn’t even be regulated under the NFA in the first place.
“The Democrats’ anti-gun logic is asinine,” GOA Senior Vice President Erich Pratt said. “They think that criminals, who are willing to break the law to commit murder, will somehow be stymied by gun control restrictions and voluntarily submit to them. Instead of adding to the confusing complexity of the National Firearms Act (NFA) — and thereby criminalizing honest gun owners — Congress should take up and pass legislation to remove Short Barreled Rifles from the NFA.”
Pro-gun control groups have spoken out against the firearms, including Giffords, an organization led by former Rep. Gabby Giffords, which lambasted the federal government’s current classification of the guns.
The Boulder gunman bought an AR-15 pistol days before opening fire.
An AR-15 pistol looks like an AR-15 rifle and shoots rounds like one too.
But in the eyes of the federal government it’s just a “pistol.” Wondering why? ⬇️ https://t.co/KYAqM6qf4F pic.twitter.com/rX7PM08psg
— Giffords (@GiffordsCourage) March 25, 2021
In late December of last year, the ATF tried to reclassify pistols equipped with braces as short-barreled rifles in some circumstances, but the agency was met with staunch resistance from both GOP lawmakers and the general public. The bureau withdrew its bid to reform regulation of the guns after members of Congress insisted the order “could turn law-abiding gun owners into criminals overnight.”
The ATF also received upward of 73,000 public comments on the proposal, most of which were negative. Pro-gun groups hailed the agency’s balk as a victory, but some cautioned the bureau may be back at it in the future.
“The ATF’s withdrawal of their proposed guidance should be the end of the road for this assault on lawful accessories and law-abiding gun owners, but we know better,” Firearms Policy Coalition’s Director of Legal Strategy Adam Kraut said at the time. “FPC will continue to carefully monitor and evaluate ATF policies and enforcement practices for violations of the law and our Constitution, and as we have before, rapidly respond with forceful and appropriate action.”
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Biden has signaled a willingness to expand gun control measures at the federal level, with the White House saying in recent days that the president would sign an executive order designed to curb gun violence in the wake of the Boulder shooting.
“Yes,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said when asked by a reporter about the possibility. “I can’t give you an exact time frame, in part, because they have to go through a review process, which is something that we do from here.”
