PISTOL BRACE UPDATE: Registration window closed, but a new door opens

America’s gun owners who have pistol-braced guns saw the window to register them with the BATF close last night.  However on the same day, a new door opened!

Best estimates suggest there are 20M or more “braced” firearms in private hands at the moment.  Yeah, quite a few of them have fallen victim to tragic boating accidents in recent days, but suffice it to say plenty remain.

Quite a few owners registered their guns with applications for “Short Barreled Rifles” with the BATF.  However, plenty more wrestled with the application process and gave up.

I imagine the vast majority of owners just said, “screw it” to registration and have done nothing.

Here’s the good news:  If you failed to successfully complete the registration process, or chose not to participate at all, you can join the Second Amendment Foundation and enjoy protection from the BATF coming to visit you for now at least.  Or catching an arrest if you’re caught in public with one of these items.

As I wrote last week, the Firearms Policy Conference obtained a similar order in federal court protecting their members last week.

IMPORTANT:  Even if you registered your braced gun, it might would be a very wise and prudent move to sign up for a membership with one or both of these organizations to protect you in case your application for the SBR “tax stamp” is denied.  (Or “disapproved” in BATF lingo.)

Here’s the press release from the SAF with details:

FEDERAL JUDGE CLARIFIES SAF MEMBERS PROTECTED BY PISTOL BRACE INJUNCTION

May 31, 2023

BELLEVUE, WA – A federal judge has clarified the scope of an injunction in a Second Amendment Foundation challenge to the Biden administration’s new “Arm Brace Rule.” The case is known as SAF, et.al. v. ATF, et. al.

SAF is joined in the case by Rainier Arms, LLC and two private citizens, Samuel Walley and William Green. They are represented by attorney Chad Flores at Flores Law in Houston, Texas.

In her prior order granting the preliminary injunction, U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle wrote, “The Court grants in part the Motion and issues a preliminary injunction as to Plaintiffs in this case only,” leaving a question as to whether the injunction applied to members of SAF. Late yesterday, SAF filed a motion to clarify the scope of the injunction. Today, Judge Boyle clarified the prior order with a new order and in a docket entry which stated, “The Court confirms that its Preliminary Injunction Order applies to both the Second Amendment Foundation, Inc. and its members.”

“SAF has received numerous inquiries from individuals as to whether the injunction covered our members,” said SAF Executive Director Adam Kraut. “Our attorney had attempted to reach an understanding with the government as to the scope of the injunction and coverage of our members. When it became apparent that the parties were not seeing eye to eye on the matter, despite the 5^th Circuit’s clarification in another case on this exact point, we asked the court for clarification. We are pleased to see that Judge Boyle agrees with our interpretation and that our members are indeed protected under this injunction.”

SAF offers several different tiers of memberships which are available at https://www.saf.org/join-saf/. Annual membership is $15, a five-year membership is $50 and a life membership is $150. Membership is effective upon date of receipt.

For questions regarding membership, please contact info@saf.org.

If this had happened last week I would have put that plaque in the background of my photos of my braced guns.