In a major Second Amendment development, members of Congress have sent a formal letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, urging the Department of Justice to adopt a groundbreaking interpretation of the National Firearms Act (NFA)—one that could unravel the law’s registration and transfer requirements for millions of firearms.

The push comes after President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed on July 4th, which included Section 70436—a provision reducing the NFA’s $200 excise tax on items like SBRs, SBSs, and suppressors to zero.

For nearly a century, the NFA’s legal foundation has hinged on the idea that registration is permissible only because it enforces a tax. That principle comes from the Supreme Court’s 1937 decision in Sonzinsky v. United States, which upheld registration because it was tied to collecting revenue.

But with the tax now eliminated, lawmakers argue that the NFA’s entire registration framework for these items no longer has constitutional footing.

In their letter, members of Congress state plainly that:

“The taxation and registration provisions of the National Firearms Act are inseparably linked… eliminating the tax eliminates the registration and transfer requirements.”

They further urge the DOJ to adopt this interpretation in all ongoing litigation, signaling that the government should stop defending NFA registration rules in court.

Congress’s request places the Department of Justice at a crossroads. DOJ leadership can either:

• Issue policy guidance acknowledging that NFA registration no longer applies to zero-tax items, or
• Fight the interpretation in court, defending a registration system that no longer collects revenue.

The outcome will influence multiple high-profile 2A lawsuits—including the GOA’s challenge to the NFA’s registration scheme—and could reshape federal firearms policy for decades.

If the DOJ agrees with Congress, Americans could witness the first major rollback of NFA restrictions in nearly 90 years, effectively removing the registration and transfer process for millions of currently regulated firearms.

If the DOJ rejects Congress’s interpretation, the nation is likely headed into one of the most consequential legal battles in Second Amendment history.

Either way, the stakes for gun owners—and for the future of the NFA—have never been higher.