Trump administration’s decision challenges 90-year-old arms control framework

The US Justice Department has, for now, declined to appeal a federal court ruling that struck down longstanding permitting requirements under the National Firearms Act for short-barrelled firearms and suppressors, effectively allowing the decision to take effect and marking a significant setback for a gun-control framework that has been in place since 1934. Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the Northern District of Texas ruled that the mandatory permitting process was unconstitutional and set Thursday as the deadline for the government to appeal or otherwise prevent the ruling from taking effect. Public court records showed that the Justice Department had not filed an appeal before the midnight deadline. The administration has not permanently abandoned its right to challenge the ruling, however, and has another 52 days to file an appeal. The development follows legislation signed by President Donald Trump last year that weakened the federal restrictions by removing the $200 tax associated with the permitting process. The Trump administration had also maintained that Congress retained constitutional authority to regulate weapons considered particularly dangerous or easily concealable. Under pressure from gun-rights groups, firearms businesses and Republican lawmakers, the Justice Department said it was assessing the impact of the ruling and respected Americans’ Second Amendment rights, but did not explain why it had not immediately sought an appeal or a stay. Gun-rights groups and firearms businesses welcomed the ruling as a major victory, while advocates of stricter gun controls criticised the government’s inaction, warning that it could weaken longstanding federal safeguards governing highly concealable firearms and suppressors. The decision represents a notable retreat by the Trump administration from its earlier position on federal firearms regulation and underscores the growing political pressure to roll back restrictions imposed under the National Firearms Act, leaving the future of the 1934-era framework subject to further legal and political battles.