Feds Face Lawsuit Over Allegedly Unconstitutional Push

(FreedomBeacon.com)- The Second Amendment groups Gun Owners of America and the Gun Owners Foundation joined as co-plaintiffs in the lawsuit brought by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton against the Biden administration over the ATF’s pistol brace ban that took effect on January 31. 

The new rule redefines a rifle as any firearm meant to be “fired from the shoulder” whether by design or redesign. It would force owners of pistol braces to register their handguns with the government as “short barrel rifles.” 

The rule gives gun owners with pistol braces 120 days to register their firearms. Gun owners can either remove the brace or adjust the length, or surrender or destroy the firearm. 

Within hours of the new rule taking effect, lawsuits challenging the ATF’s authority to implement such a rule began pouring in. 

A coalition of 25 states, led by North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley and West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, are suing the Biden administration over the ATF rule. 

In their lawsuit, filed with several gun rights organizations in the US District Court in North Dakota, the state attorneys general argue that the “arbitrary and capricious” pistol brace rule imposes additional regulations on legal gun owners, including longer waiting periods, higher taxes, and registration. 

In joining Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s separate lawsuit filed in US District Court in Texas, the Gun Owners of America argue that the new rule not only violates the Second Amendment but also violates the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments as well. 

In bringing suit against the Biden administration, Attorney General Paxton said there is “no legal basis” for the ATF’s decision to reclassify stabilizing braces, forcing Americans to register them under the threat of jail time if they fail to comply. 

In early February, the National Rifle Association joined the lawsuit filed by the coalition of states.