Rep. Roy Introduces Bill to Close Loophole in National Firearms Act

On Tuesday, alongside more than twenty of my colleagues, I introduced the No Backdoor Gun Control Act. This legislation would remove “Any Other Weapon” (AOW) from the definition of a firearm under the National Firearms Act (NFA), ensuring that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) could not use the AOW section to violate Americans' Second Amendment rights. This is especially important should legislation that removes short-barreled rifles and short-barreled shotguns (SBRs, SBSs) from the NFA be enacted. Closing this loophole is an important step forward in reining in the ATF.

“Bearing arms in self-defense is a human right. It is evident from the ATF’s behavior that, under Joe Biden’s Department of Justice, the agency is hellbent on attacking the Second Amendment through every means at its disposal. I am grateful for my colleagues’ work in Congress to remove short-barreled rifles and shotguns (SBRs, SBSs) from regulation under the National Firearms Act. However, should that legislation be successful in doing so, the NFA’s ‘Any Other Weapon’ provision would still allow an anti-gun administration to use the ATF to unilaterally regulate these firearms, and, more importantly, target their owners. The No Backdoor Gun Control Act would close this notable loophole and help protect law-abiding gun owners,” I said.

“The federal government has no business taxing and registering privately owned firearms with a catch-all term like “Any Other Weapon” or AOW. With the Biden Administration weaponizing definitions from the draconian National Firearms Act of 1934 to ban as many as 40,000,000 lawfully acquired guns like AR-15s, Rep. Chip Roy’s repeal of federal AOW regulations could not come at a better time,” said Aidan Johnston, Director of Federal Affairs, Gun Owners of America.

The No Backdoor Gun Control Act:

• Removes AOWs from the definition of a firearm under the NFA
• Ensures that AOW owners are treated as having met requirements of state licensing laws that reference the NFA
• Requires the DOJ to destroy AOW registration records

The legislation is cosponsored by Reps. Daniel Webster (FL-01), Lauren Boebert (CO-03), Tom Tiffany (WI-07), Louie Gohmert (TX-01), Ted Budd (NC-13), Dan Crenshaw (TX-02), Marjorie Taylor Green (GA-14), Ken Buck (CO-04), Michael Cloud (TX-27), Matt Rosendale, (MT-at-Large), Jody Hice (GA-10), Ralph Norman (SC-05), Scott Perry (PA-10), Alex X. Mooney (WV-02), Randy Weber (TX-14), Diana Harshbarger (TN-01), Jeff Duncan (SC-03), Bob Good (VA-05), Jeff Van Drew (NJ-02), Thomas Massie (KY-04), Michelle Fischbach (MN -07), and Mary Miller (IL-15).

This legislation is supported by Gun Owners of America (GOA) and the National Association of Gun Rights (NAGR).