HYDE-SMITH RENEWS SUPPORT FOR REFORMING SUPPRESSOR REGS TO HELP PREVENT HEARING LOSS AMONG HUNTERS
Miss. Senator Again Cosponsors ‘Hearing Protection Act’ to Increase Access to Suppressors by Reclassifying Them as Standard Firearms
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) this week renewed her support for reforming federal regulations that restrict access to suppressors, equipment that could help protect hunters from hearing loss.
Hyde-Smith is an original cosponsor of the Hearing Protection Act (S.364), which would reclassify suppressors to regulate them like standard firearms and remove them from the jurisdiction of the National Firearms Act (NFA).
“Federal rules and regulations for suppressors don’t make sense and infringe upon the Second Amendment rights for law-abiding gun owners. The current regulations are overly restrictive, and as a result, too many hunters and their companions are being hurt. The Hearing Protection Act would bring common sense to how suppressors are regulated, helping hunters and sport shooters in Mississippi and across the country avoid permanent hearing damage,” Senator Hyde-Smith said.
U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) reintroduced the Hearing Protection Act on Monday. Crapo, with Hyde-Smith as a cosponsor, also introduced this legislation in the 118th and 117th Congresses.
“Federal red tape continues to follow the false Hollywood narrative that suppressors are silent, and ignores the reality that they serve a genuine purpose in protecting the hearing of law-abiding American citizens exercising their Second Amendment rights,” said Senator Crapo. “It is past time Congress removes the burdensome barriers to accessing this equipment for the safety of Idaho’s hunters and sportsmen.”
Under the NFA, suppressors, unlike firearms, are subjected to additional regulatory burdens that often exceed the rules applied in more liberal European countries where suppressors are required to prevent hearing damage.
Key provisions in S.364 include:
- Reclassifying suppressors to be regulated as traditional firearms;
- Removing suppressors from NFA jurisdiction;
- Replace the lengthy federal transfer process with an instant background check through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, making the process for purchasing and transferring suppressors the same as for rifles and shotguns;
- Taxing suppressors under the Pittman-Robertson Act rather than the NFA, which would direct more funding to state wildlife conservation agencies; and,
- Requiring the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to destroy all suppressor registration records within 365 days after enactment of this legislation.
The Hearing Protection Act would not change any state laws that already prohibit suppressors, nor does it eliminate the requirement for background checks.
The National Rifle Association supports this legislation, which has been referred to the Senate Finance Committee.
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