Thirty U.S. Senators have asked the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) to immediately begin rescinding unlawful Biden-era rules that infringe on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans.
The February 20, 2025 letter asserts that the ATF should align its policies with President Trump’s Second Amendment priorities as laid out in his recent Executive Order. Among other requests, the letter calls on ATF officials to work with Attorney General Pam Bondi to quickly identify and rescind policies that allow unlawful firearms regulations.
“We urge you to immediately align ATF’s rules and policies with the President’s strong support for the Second Amendment,” the Senators wrote.
“Under former President Joe Biden, ATF adopted numerous policies and rules that infringed upon Americans’ Second Amendment protections. President Trump’s Executive Order directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to review and develop a plan of action regarding President Biden’s unlawful firearms regulations. We ask that you work with the Attorney General to quickly identify and rescind these policies,” they continued.
The Senators targeted as unlawful the:
- “Engaged in the Business” rule intended to move the ATF toward imposing universal background checks on law-abiding Americans;
“Pistol Brace” rule that improperly reclassified pistols equipped with stabilizing braces as short-barreled rifles, thereby subjecting them to stringent regulations and serious criminal penalties under the National Firearms Act and the Gun Control Act; - “Ghost Gun” rule that cracked down on law-abiding hobbyists exercising their Second Amendment rights to privately build firearms, a longstanding tradition dating back to the Colonial Era; and
- “Zero Tolerance” policy under which ATF has revoked the licenses of federal firearm licensees (FFLs) over minor bookkeeping violations.
In addition, the Senators request that the ATF immediately destroy the hundreds of millions of ATF Form 4473 firearm transaction records and other licensee records that are over 20 years old, and allow FFLs to also destroy such records.
“These records have no particular law enforcement value but do contain the sensitive information of millions of law-abiding gun owners,” the Senators wrote. “Ending the policy of retaining these very old records will save money for the American taxpayer and counteract ATF’s unconstitutional rule change.”
Finally, the letter encouraged ATF to follow a congressional directive for the ATF to improve the archaic National Firearms Act application process in order to make it as efficient as the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
The cosigners include Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and U.S. Senators Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Jim Justice (R-W.Va.), James Risch (R-Idaho), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), James Lankford (R-Okla.), John Hoeven (R-N.D.), Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kan.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.), Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.).
Click here for more details included in the Senators’ letter to ATF.
