The Hearing Protection Act 2017

Making the dream a reality.

- Alexandria Kincaid

If you’ve ever legally bought or built a suppressor, you’ve shared the pain of more than a million Americans who’ve endured and complied with the federal government’s bureaucratic paper shuffle before enjoying the fruits of your labor.

You prepared and submitted special forms, a photograph, and a set of fingerprints. Before July 13, 2016, you either waited for the approval of your local chief law enforcement officer (CLEO) or spent time and money to prepare a special trust. You also paid a $200 tax. And then you waited. Six to 12 months went by while the ATF hand-processed this personal and revealing pile of paperwork.

And finally, if your forms were two-sided, your signatures original on duplicate copies, your supporting documents in order, and, of course, a background check revealed you’re not prohibited from possessing firearms, the special “tax stamp” was affixed. Your new suppressor was officially tied to you in the National Firearm Registration and Transfer Record (NFRTR), and permission was finally yours to enjoy the pleasure of shooting without earplugs.

Currently in America, the land of the free and the home of as many as 80 million gun owners, American taxpayers dole out millions of dollars annually to enforce an inefficient, expensive, and unnecessary process. These dollars are spent in the name of overseeing and taxing gun owners who, in part, wish to acquire the mufflers once sold at hardware stores for around $5. These same, heavily regulated “firearms” are required hunting tools in some European countries.

The American Suppressor Association (ASA), backed by gun owners, dealers, and manufacturers across the country, is lobbying for what its supporters view as a necessary update to the law.