This article was adapted from a post on thefirearmblog.com.
There is a bill in the very beginning stages of the U.S. House of Representatives that takes square aim at manufacturers, dealers and owners of National Firearms Act (NFA) controlled firearms. A group, by the way, that is already heavily regulated, burdened and law abiding under the existing system. The proposed legislation, H.R. 5103 increases firearms taxes and fees across the board and even includes a section that will continue to adjust them for inflation.
“If this bill becomes law, it will mark the end of the modern silencer industry.”
I’m going to invoke my leadership privilege here at TFB and skim the top of the political debate on the use of taxes to regulate and control actions and ownership. Even though my it is my personal belief that this new bill has only a small likelihood of passing, I am both concerned and dismayed that legislation like this can even see the light of day. The statistics on the use of silencers used in crimes is beyond minuscule—so to further hinder and punish legal ownership is, at best, a dishonest tactic, especially when it is used as the masthead for a bill named the “Gun Violence Prevention and Safe Communities Act.”
1) http://freebeacon.com/issues/atf-despite-nearly-1-3-million-silencers-united-states-rarely-used-crimes/
2) http://apps.washingtonpost.com/g/documents/national/read-the-white-paper-on-firearms-regulations/2325/
3) http://www.westerncriminology.org/documents/WCR/v08n2/clark.pdf
Among the increase in taxes on ammunition and firearms, and increases in SOT and FFL licensing and fees, H.R. 5103 raises the NFA tax to transfer silencers from $200 to $500. Taxing the transfer of NFA with what is essentially the total cost of an average suppressor will grind sales to a halt, force dealers and distributors to significantly reduce inventories and will crush production by manufacturers.
Many people will no doubt take issue with the formatting and language in the proposed bill—although it is accepted practice to propose changes and additions to current laws with legal shorthand, the following section makes it difficult for the general public to understand what is actually being suggested:
Increase in Transfer Tax On Firearms
(1) IN GENERAL — Subsection (a) of section 5811 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended
(A) by striking “$200” and inserting “$500”; and
(B) by striking “$5” and inserting “$100”
Stating the original law sections in their entirety would give the people an opportunity to see the real impact of the proposed bill. As it stands now, the less informed can barely see a $300 tax increase in NFA tax. All of this is no doubt done on purpose. By keeping only legislators in the know, it makes it difficult for regular people to read the bill and understand it…making it easier for anti-gunners and gun-control activists and legislators to push their agenda even deeper with little to no opposition.
HR 5103 is detrimental to both law abiding gun owners in the U.S. that already follow the many intense rules and regulations, and to an industry that is by default backed by an American workforce. If this bill becomes law, it will mark the end of the modern silencer industry. Whereas there may be pseudo-workarounds for SBR regulations (pistol stabilizing braces), nothing can take the place of a suppressor. This bill, along with the majority of current gun control bills, comes from and is written from the perspective of a person who knows very little about firearms and the components associated with the firearms industry.
It’s almost as if the opinions of anti-gunners and gun control legislators are formed buy the movies they watch and the news that is reported (which is most often void of real, actual facts about firearms). The same is true with HR 5103—unless you’ve done your own research or actually own a suppressor, you would be left with the assumption that suppressors are only used by assassins, and therefore have no place inside of a gun safe in any law-abiding gun owner’s home. But we know the truth: suppressors are nothing more than hearing protection. They are the equivalent of taking the hearing protection off your ears and putting them on the rifle (or pistol).
A year ago, there was a glimmer of hope for the Hearing Protection Act; now we are facing a $500 NFA tax and the potential end of an era—unbelievable, really.
