Pistol Brace Amnesty/Registration

[majormadmax]

Did you expect it to? The rule has been published in the Federal Register. To change anything, the rulemaking process has to be followed or courts have to intervene.

This whole thing is political theater. Also, nobody has had an AR pistol since the day this rule was published. Anybody that did, on the day the rule was published, suddenly found them the possessors of unregistered Short Barrel Rifles. If you fill out the ‘special’ F1, you’ll have to acknowledge the fact you previously owned an NFA item and BATFE is just choosing not to prosecute you for that transgression since you are voluntarily registering it now.

Not at all, which is while I filed my Form 1.

And while technically all AR pistols became SBRs when the ruling was published, how many people were prosecuted for owning an unregistered SBR since it did?

The entire situation is ridiculous, but honestly adding a "brace" (essentially a stock) to an AR pistol did make it an SBR. It's just the ATF, in its usual confusion, bought into the argument that wasn't the case.

Then they realized it was.

In the end, AR pistol owners get a free tax stamp for the ATF's **** up. Some will not register, and most likely will never be held liable for failing to do so; but there's always the chance.

For some like myself, it's not worth the risk.

Do I really care that the Feds know I own a AR pistol/SBR? Not really, Big Brother has more information on me than I care to think about; but in the end it's only one firearm out of many they are aware of.

Hell, I had a SBR on my 'To Do' list for quite some time. This just kinda forced the issue, and kept a few hundred dollars in my pocket as a result. That's money I can use when I file my Form 4 for a suppressor one day down the road...

 

[PinnedandRecessed]

I don't subscribe to the "we should have known better so it's ok for the ATF to flip flop whenever it wants to" philosophy. With that said, the dilemma gun owners find themselves in is nuanced with potential pitfalls on either side. Standing on principle or living in the world as it is. Hoping the courts strike it down in the future (bump stocks still have a ways to go) and hoping LEO's don't knock on your door in the meantime or taking advantage of a free stamp while going along with bureaucratical fiat. No easy choice. Everyone will have to decide what is best for themselves.

 

[majormadmax]

I don't subscribe to the "we should have known better so it's ok for the ATF to flip flop whenever it wants to" philosophy. With that said, the dilemma gun owners find themselves in is nuanced with potential pitfalls on either side. Standing on principle or living in the world as it is. Hoping the courts strike it down in the future (bump stocks still have a ways to go) and hoping LEO's don't knock on your door in the meantime or taking advantage of a free stamp while going along with bureaucratical fiat. No easy choice. Everyone will have to decide what is best for themselves.

It's not the first time the government has changed policy, and if we're being honest about it, we all knew they were SBRs the entire time. We just took advantage of the ATF's confusion as long as we could! Now that they realized their mistake, at least they are offering to waive the $200 tax stamp which is fair.

No, I don't like registering any firearms. They are not cars, they won't be used on public roadways where regulation is necessary. Nor is driving a Constitutional right that "shall not be infringed."

But unless someone can figure out how to get the US Supreme Court to find NFA and the GCA are completely unconstitutional thereby tossing both out; we have to operate under the rules until they are changed.

We've gotten Constitutional Carry and Open Carry in Texas, so the Lone Star State is on the right track; but the Federal side seems intent on taking away our rights, not protecting them. There is a war on the Second Amendment, without doubt; but this not a battle in that campaign. It's a bureaucratic SNAFU that's been realized and corrected, and now we have two choices, comply and register your AR pistols as SBRs, or be a rebel and accept the risks of non-compliance. Some of us cannot afford the latter, as it would directly affect our livelihood and I for one cannot afford to risk it.

To those who will, I wish you the best of luck!

 

[toddnjoyce]

It's not the first time the government has changed policy, and if we're being honest about it, we all knew they were SBRs the entire time. We just took advantage of the ATF's confusion as long as we could!

This is where I disagree. ATF specifically redefined what a rifle is to accomplish what could not be done in Congress.

 

[seeker_two]

I just wonder how much time will pass between the BATFE's first brace raid and OKC II.....

 

[vmax]

Apparently Texas passed a "up yours ATF" Bill today regarding SBRs..
Have no details

 

[V-Tach]

Apparently Texas passed a "up yours ATF" Bill today regarding SBRs..
Have no details

 

[jimbo]

It's not the first time the government has changed policy, and if we're being honest about it, we all knew they were SBRs the entire time. We just took advantage of the ATF's confusion as long as we could! Now that they realized their mistake, at least they are offering to waive the $200 tax stamp which is fair.

No, I don't like registering any firearms. They are not cars, they won't be used on public roadways where regulation is necessary. Nor is driving a Constitutional right that "shall not be infringed."

But unless someone can figure out how to get the US Supreme Court to find NFA and the GCA are completely unconstitutional thereby tossing both out; we have to operate under the rules until they are changed.

We've gotten Constitutional Carry and Open Carry in Texas, so the Lone Star State is on the right track; but the Federal side seems intent on taking away our rights, not protecting them. There is a war on the Second Amendment, without doubt; but this not a battle in that campaign. It's a bureaucratic SNAFU that's been realized and corrected, and now we have two choices, comply and register your AR pistols as SBRs, or be a rebel and accept the risks of non-compliance. Some of us cannot afford the latter, as it would directly affect our livelihood and I for one cannot afford to risk it.

To those who will, I wish you the best of luck!

How long does it take to receive the tax stamp after submitting form 1?
May 31 is the deadline.

 

[toddnjoyce]

How long does it take to receive the tax stamp after submitting form 1?
May 31 is the deadline.

In the final rule explanation, BATFE says the email you got acknowledging receipt of your application will be sufficient proof of a stamp until such time as one is provided to you.

Who knows when you’ll get an actual e-stamp back, if ever.

 

[benenglish]

But unless someone can figure out how to get the US Supreme Court to find NFA ... completely unconstitutional...

They already did, in the plain, literal language of Miller. Then Scalia decided to throw a couple of paragraphs into the Heller decision to say that taking the Miller decision literally might make machineguns legal for everybody so, obviously, the plain language of the decision didn't mean what the plain language of the decision said.

Rant over.

On a serious note, maybe this will create a situation where the next all-R government can pass a technical corrections bill for the NFA. It was supposed to be tougher on more concealable firearms and put handguns in the same category as full-autos. That wouldn't pass so the handgun licensing was dropped. To make the internal logic of the NFA consistent, SBRs and SBSs should be restricted less than handguns because they are less concealable than handguns.

Holy cow! I think I just suggested that Congress had the capability of doing something logical!

It's late and I'm obviously too tired to think straight. I'm off to bed.

 

[Poohgyrr]

If there is any question about what the 2nd means, just review all the communications from our Founding Fathers before, during, and after the Constitutional Convention.

Each Colony wrote their draft of what the Constitution should be. That included a lot of personal AND public letters, newspaper articles, public discussions, debates in their legislatures, etc.

Then, each Colony sent a final draft to the Convention. Most of those drafts, from the Colonies, included lengthy explanations of why people have the right to own and carry firearms. The final 2nd is really short and plain spoken.

Challenging this rule in court is beyond the means of regular folks. Even the big organizations like SAF are having a really rough time. If it was me, at this point, I’d just dump any brace and wait to see how it all shakes out in court.

They will never voluntarily stop trying to disarm folks anyway; that’s the truth of worldwide history. Doesn't mean you give up. Life isn’t fair or easy.
FWIW

 

[majormadmax]

How long does it take to receive the tax stamp after submitting form 1?
May 31 is the deadline.

Currently 40 days for an eForm 1, according to this ATF website...

But, as Todd stated, all you have to do is file before the 31 May deadline. Proof of that is compliance.

 

[majormadmax]

Apparently Texas passed a "up yours ATF" Bill today regarding SBRs..
Have no details

Not quite...

Back in February, State Rep. Richard Hayes (R-Denton) filed House Bill 2705 to remove short-barreled rifles from the list of prohibited weapons under Texas law. Current law prohibits SBRs unless they are registered with the Federal government.

As of 26 April, HB 2705 was only "out of House committee on Community Safety, Select with vote of 8 Ayes, 4 Nays, 0 Present Not Voting, 1 Absent."

It still requires to be passed by House, sent through the Senate Committee, passed by the Senate, then signed by Gov Abbott before it becomes law.

 

[oldag]

Not quite...

Back in February, State Rep. Richard Hayes (R-Denton) filed House Bill 2705 to remove short-barreled rifles from the list of prohibited weapons under Texas law. Current law prohibits SBRs unless they are registered with the Federal government.

As of 26 April, HB 2705 was only "out of House committee on Community Safety, Select with vote of 8 Ayes, 4 Nays, 0 Present Not Voting, 1 Absent."

It still requires to be passed by House, sent through the Senate Committee, passed by the Senate, then signed by Gov Abbott before it becomes law.

And it will do no good.

 

[Otto_Mation]

How long does it take to receive the tax stamp after submitting form 1?
May 31 is the deadline.

Although the website says 40 days as mentioned above, there is no real rhyme or reason as to when you will get your approved paper work. There is a thread in the reddit nfa section where people are reporting when they receive their approvals and the times vary wildly. I have seen where some are coming in as soon as 10 days and others are in excess of 100 days. I submitted three on Feb 8th and I am still waiting on one of them. That's over 13 weeks. I am thinking about withdrawing it and re-submitting. There are some people that submitted as soon as they could in Jan and they are still waiting while others who submitted a last week are getting approvals this week. Typical government bullshit.

 

[GeorgeS]

It is the random nature of the NFA Branch. They've approved 125,000 Form 1s since the rule publication in completely rndom order; some batched, others not..

 

[Otto_Mation]

It is the random nature of the NFA Branch. They've approved 125,000 Form 1s since the rule publication in completely rndom order; some batched, others not..

That is an interesting statistic. 125,000 approved. Is that only amnesty form 1's or all form 1's? That is a small number either way with there being millions of braces out there. There must be a lot of non-compliance.

 

[jimbo]

In the final rule explanation, BATFE says the email you got acknowledging receipt of your application will be sufficient proof of a stamp until such time as one is provided to you.

Who knows when you’ll get an actual e-stamp back, if ever.

How long does it take to receive the email that acknowledges receipt?

 

[candcallen]

Do you put in finger prints with the brace form 1s?

 

[Otto_Mation]

How long does it take to receive the email that acknowledges receipt?

You receive it moments after you submit the completed form 1 if you use the eform. After it is approved they will send you a signed copy of the form 1 in pdf format.