Gun Control: Federal Firearms Laws and Recent Legislative Proposals

Federal firearms regulation in the United States operates within the framework established by the Second Amendment, which the Supreme Court has interpreted as protecting an individual right to keep and bear arms for traditionally lawful purposes. District of Columbia v. Heller (2008) established the individual rights interpretation, McDonald v. City of Chicago (2010) applied the Second Amendment to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment, and Bruen (2022) required courts to evaluate firearms restrictions based on historical analogues rather than the means-end scrutiny previously employed by most circuit courts.

The primary federal firearms statutes include the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA), which imposes registration and tax requirements on short-barreled rifles and shotguns, machine guns, silencers, and destructive devices; the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA), which established the federal firearms licensing system, prohibited categories of persons from firearms possession, and restricted interstate firearms commerce; and the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act of 1993, which mandated background checks for firearms purchases from licensed dealers through NICS.

Federal firearms dealers (FFLs) are required to conduct a background check through NICS before transferring a firearm to a non-licensee. If the check is not completed within three business days, the dealer may proceed with the transfer, a provision known as the default proceed rule. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act modified this timeline for purchasers under 21, allowing up to ten business days for enhanced review including checks of juvenile records. Private sales between individuals who are not engaged in the business of dealing in firearms are not subject to the federal background check requirement, though some states have enacted universal background check laws.

The ATF is responsible for licensing firearms dealers, manufacturers, and importers; regulating the firearms industry; tracing firearms used in crimes; and investigating firearms trafficking and other violations. Recent ATF rulemakings include a rule defining the term "engaged in the business" of dealing in firearms and a rule addressing the classification of firearms with stabilizing braces. The bump stock ban promulgated in 2018 was struck down by the Supreme Court in Garland v. Cargill (2024), which held that bump stocks do not convert semiautomatic rifles into machine guns under the NFA's definition.

Congress has considered a range of proposals addressing firearms policy. Proponents of stricter regulation have advanced bills mandating universal background checks for all firearms transfers, establishing federal red flag or extreme risk protection order procedures, banning the manufacture and sale of assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, raising the minimum age for purchasing semiautomatic rifles, and requiring safe storage of firearms. Proponents argue these measures would reduce gun violence while respecting Second Amendment rights.

Opponents of additional regulation contend that existing laws should be more effectively enforced and that new restrictions would burden law-abiding gun owners without significantly reducing criminal misuse of firearms. Alternative proposals include enhancing mental health services, increasing school security, strengthening penalties for straw purchases and firearms trafficking, and expanding concealed carry reciprocity among states. The Bruen decision has added constitutional complexity to legislative debates, as any new regulation must be defensible under the historical tradition test.

In the wake of the Bruen decision, lower courts have been engaged in extensive litigation evaluating the constitutionality of various federal and state firearms laws under the new historical tradition framework. Courts have reached differing conclusions on the validity of laws restricting firearms for domestic violence restraining order respondents, unlawful drug users, and persons under 21. The Supreme Court upheld the federal prohibition on firearms possession by persons subject to domestic violence restraining orders in United States v. Rahimi (2024). ATF enforcement priorities have included combating firearms trafficking and the proliferation of privately manufactured firearms lacking serial numbers.