ATF Proposes Rule to Ban Pistol Brace

In the last few days, the ATF has delivered on EO Joe‘s Executive Order from April to attempt to ban pistol braces. Not all pistol braces; just the ones that the ATF have determined make a pistol into a short barreled rifle (SBR). An SBR is illegal under the National Firearms Act (NFA), unless you pay the $200 tax and “get your stamp.” Obviously, that $200 makes any weapon far less lethal than if you didn’t pay that tax, right? I say that in jest, but that’s really what’s going on here. “This gun is a weapon of war and it is illegal! Now pay us $200 and you’re OK.”

The ATF Proposed Rule Banning Pistol Braces

Here’s the ATF announcement of the proposed rule, and here’s the 77-page PDF containing the actual text of the proposed rule. Be forewarned: the language is gov-speak on steroids.

In fact, the ATF is not banning pistol braces at all. No, instead, they are redefining the term “rifle”. It says so right there in black and white: “Amend the definition of “rifle”…by adding a sentence at the end of each definition to clarify that the term “rifle” includes any weapon with a rifled barrel and equipped with an attached “stabilizing brace” that has objective design features and characteristics that indicate that the firearm is designed to be fired from the shoulder.”

The Determination of Pistol vs. Rifle

How will you know if your particular pistol brace causes your pistol to be “designed to be fired from the shoulder“? That’s where it really gets fun. You see, the government is going to create a “points system”. The Facebook memes make themselves! They will assign points to your pistol brace and mine. Then, when a pistol brace gets too many points, based on ergonomic features eerily similar to those formerly prohibited by California’s unconstitutional “assault weapons” ban, POOF! that pistol is now a short barreled rifle, and therefore must be regulated under the National Firearms Act (NFA). That’ll be $200 please.

To buy that new “rifle“, you must now do the exact same exercise as if you were going to purchase a suppressor for that pistol. Which brings me to my next point. What if you’re like the other 20 million or so Americans who already bought one of these “rifles”, legally? Keep reading.

Pistol Brace Ban Enforcement

My response is always the same to regulations like this. And, let’s please remember that these are regulations created by Executive Order, not legislation. If Biden loses the 2024 election, this regulation can simply be cancelled by another EO from the next President. My response is, “how will you enforce it?”

Seriously.

When you buy one of our Sig M400 Tread Pistols with a SB Tactical SBA3 brace, the ATF has no record of it. There’s no gun registration in Georgia. This regulation would retroactively make you a felon, but the ATF has no way of knowing that.

Why Would the ATF Ban a Pistol Brace?

See where I’m going? Will the ATF actually publish announcement that says something like, “If you’re one of the 20 million or so citizens who formerly legally purchased one of these pistols and attached one of these very specific kinds of braces, will you please raise your hand so we can put you on the NFA list and collect $200 from you?“

The government makes all kinds of idiotic rules. Did you know that, in Georgia, it’s illegal to keep a donkey in a bathtub? Also, on Sundays in Georgia, you may not carry an ice cream cone in your back pocket. And, members of the State Assembly may not be ticketed for speeding while the State Assembly is in session. That last one makes my point. For all the dumb rules government makes, there is always a reason that serves the government, and not the freedom of the people. Always.

What advantage do you think the government gains by collecting the names, addresses, firearms, and $200 from anyone who legally already purchased a pistol with a “stabilizing brace”?