The Justice Department said Friday it will no longer enforce federal registration requirements for firearm suppressors, short-barreled rifles and certain other guns, following a court ruling that struck down parts of a key gun law, the Associated Press reported.
A Texas federal judge ruled in August that the permitting process was unconstitutional. That ruling applied only to the parties in the case, but the department said it would stop enforcing the requirements more broadly.
“The direction from the President, Congress, and the courts is clear,” ATF Director Rob Cekada said, adding that the agency would stay focused on violent crime.
Gun rights groups have long criticized the registration process, which involved paperwork, fingerprinting and waiting for approval. It’s the latest move by the administration to loosen firearm restrictions.
Sources: AP via KTAR News. Thee Arizona Times uses AI-assisted reporting reviewed against the sources listed.
Photo: gar2chan / CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
