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A federal judge has intervened to block the Biden administration from enforcing a gun sale rule in Texas that requires firearms dealers to conduct background checks on gun show buyers or other places outside of their brick-and-mortar locations.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, appointed by former President Donald Trump, issued a ruling just before a new regulation was set to take effect on Monday. His order blocks the federal government from enforcing the rule against several gun-rights groups, including Gun Owners of America. However, the ruling does not apply to Louisiana, Mississippi, and Utah, which are also parties to the lawsuit.
“Plaintiffs understandably fear that these presumptions will trigger civil or criminal penalties for conduct deemed lawful just yesterday,” Kacsmaryk wrote in his decision.
Earlier this month, twenty-six Republican attorneys general filed lawsuits in federal courts in Arkansas, Florida, and Texas to prevent the enforcement of a new rule. The plaintiffs claim that the rule infringes upon the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and argue that President Joe Biden lacks the authority to implement it.
The Associated Press added:
The new requirement is the Biden administration’s latest effort to curtail gun violence and aims to close a loophole that has allowed unlicensed dealers to sell tens of thousands of guns every year without checking that the potential buyer is not legally prohibited from having a firearm.
Kacsmaryk wrote that the rule sets presumptions about when a person intends to make a profit and whether a seller is “engaged in the business.” He said this is “highly problematic” for multiple reasons, including that it forces the firearm seller to prove innocence rather than the government to prove guilt.
“This ruling is a compelling rebuke of their tyrannical and unconstitutional actions that purposely misinterpreted federal law to ensure their preferred policy outcome,” Gun Owners of America senior vice president Erich Pratt noted in a Monday statement following the ruling.
In August, officials from the Biden administration proposed a new rule that attracted over 380,000 public comments. This came in the wake of the most comprehensive gun violence prevention bill passed in decades, which President Biden signed in 2022. The legislation was a result of bipartisan agreement following the tragic Uvalde Elementary School shooting that resulted in the deaths of 19 children and two teachers, an event that occurred two years ago this week, the AP reported.
The rule enacts a modification from the 2022 law, broadening the definition of individuals considered “engaged in the business” of selling firearms. Those falling under this updated category are required to obtain a license from the ATF and must conduct background checks on purchasers.
“This is going to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and felons,” Biden said in a statement last month. “And my administration is going to continue to do everything we possibly can to save lives. Congress needs to finish the job and pass universal background checks legislation now.”
Last week, a coalition of firearms rights groups urged the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to “back away” from its attempts to reclassify AR-15 “pistols” as guns that should be taxed and regulated.
In a legal document, advocates expressed confidence that they would ultimately prevail against the ATF. “Our earlier victory in the case should have signaled to the government to back away from its rule,” said Second Amendment Foundation Executive Vice President Alan Gottlieb, according to the Washington Examiner. “Instead, the government has appealed in hopes of saving this arbitrary restriction, and we’re simply asking the court to affirm its earlier ruling.”
Gottlieb’s group has joined forces with two others to oppose the ATF’s decision to reverse a decade-long policy of not regulating AR-style pistols equipped with arm braces designed to assist handicapped and unsteady shooters.
When Joe Biden assumed office, the agency sought to overhaul its previous policy, asserting that certain pistols should fall under a category of heavily regulated and taxed rifles. This change could potentially criminalize the owners of approximately 7-10 million such guns overnight.
Recent legal cases have found that firearms in “common” use are generally free from regulation. SAF argued that the presence of up to 10 million AR pistols in use demonstrates their “common” status.
The challenge, mirrored in other cases nationwide, is likely to go to the U.S. Supreme Court and could influence the upcoming presidential election.
