A U.S. District Court judge for the Northern District of Texas delivered a massive ruling for gun owners yesterday, killing, at least for now, the remaining “registration scheme” for short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns and suppressors, calling it unconstitutional.
The ruling comes from the Jesnsen v. ATF case supported by the Second Amendment Foundation, along with Silencer Shop Foundation, et. al. v. ATF.
Judge Rules Against NFA
The ruling marks the most significant win against the National Firearms Act since its passage in 1934. In essence, following the One Big Beautiful Bill’s passage, the $200 tax was removed from criteria to buy suppressors and SBRs. That opening illuminated the fact that all that remained was a registration process, one deemed unconstitutional to our Second Amendment rights.
“The basis for each lawsuit challenging the NFA registration scheme is the same—without the tax, the remaining requirements for the affected arms under the NFA have no constitutional basis,” said SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut. “And today the first court to rule on the issue has agreed with us. We’re eager to continue this fight and leave major portions of the NFA in the dustbin of history. A big win is a great way to kick things off.”
“The removal of the $200 tax in the One Big Beautiful Bill offers the best opportunity to remove the NFA registration requirements that we’ve had in almost a century,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “We are thrilled the court ruled in our favor and look forward to other jurisdictions following suit in our remaining NFA cases. This ruling will set a precedent we can now argue in courts across the country to allow Americans to exercise their Second Amendment rights without fear of being placed on some government registry.”
What Does This All Mean?
By virtue of this landmark ruling, the judge issued a seven-day stay to these components of the NFA. The changes—the elimination of the registration requirement—is set to take place on August 12, 2026, provided the government doesn’t challenge by appeal, which most experts assume it will.
Nevertheless, the tide is arguably in our favor better than ever before. Along with Jensen and Silencer Shop cases, the SAF is also named as a plaintiff in Brown v. ATF and is backing Roberts v. ATF. Look for SAF and other 2A organization to continue to apply pressure in the courts with the stated goal of repealing as much of the NFA as possible—forever.
