When Congress approved the National Firearms Act (NFA) in 1934, it framed the law as a tax measure, justifying its regulations as tools to facilitate the generation of revenue. That choice matters, a federal judge in Texas ruled on Wednesday, because several NFA provisions no longer serve that function. When Congress eliminated the federal taxes on making and transferring sound suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns in 2025, U.S. District Judge James Hendrix concluded, it also eliminated the constitutional basis for the ancillary rules governing those activities.
Since the decision in Silencer Shop Foundation v. ATF bars enforcement of the challenged firearm regulations against the plaintiffs, it might look like a victory for gun rights. But it does not hinge on the Second Amendment, and it upholds a broader principle: The federal government's powers are limited to those enumerated in the Constitution, and congressional legislation must be authorized by one of those powers.
