Austin News

On May 16, 2024, U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and 11 other Senate Republicans introduced the Repealing Illegal Freedom and Liberty Excises (RIFLE) Act. This legislation aims to eliminate a tax imposed on firearms regulated under the National Firearms Act.

Sen. Cornyn expressed his support for the bill, stating, “This outdated tax must not continue to burden law-abiding Texans who want to exercise their Second Amendment rights. Our commonsense legislation would remove this frivolous financial mandate, and I’m glad to support it.”

Similarly, Sen. Cotton voiced his endorsement of the RIFLE Act: “Law-abiding Americans who exercise their Second Amendment rights should not be subject to unnecessary taxes and restrictions preventing them from doing so. Passed into law in 1934, the National Firearms Act needs to be amended. Our legislation will remove the red tape that places an undue financial burden on would-be gun owners.”

The proposed legislation has received cosponsorship from Senators John Barrasso (R-WY), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Steve Daines (R-MT), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and Rick Scott (R-FL). Congresswoman Ashley Hinson (IA-02) has introduced companion legislation in the House.

Items regulated by the 1934 National Firearms Act—including short-barreled shotguns and rifles, fully automatic firearms, suppressors, and a catchall category of explosives—are subjected to an outdated $200 tax. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has acknowledged that this tax was initially intended "to curtail, if not prohibit, transactions" of firearms. The tax has remained unchanged since 1934 and is equivalent to $4,648 in today's dollars. Since 2018, ownership of NFA-regulated items has grown by more than 250% as more sportsmen, shooters, and firearm enthusiasts exercise their Second Amendment rights.

The RIFLE Act aims to remove this federally mandated financial burden on law-abiding gun owners. It has received endorsements from the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF).