Has the NFA Been Dismantled?
The United States District Court, Northern District of Texas, San Angelo Division has ruled in favor of plaintiffs, including the Texas State Rifle Association, in regard to the NFA status of certain weapons. This ruling is not a dismantling of the NFA! It is a very good start, though. Contrary to current sentiment on the Internet, this is just the beginning of a potential win.
What has happened? The court substantively agreed with the plaintiffs and declared that certain items that were no longer taxed under the NFA could no longer be regulated under the NFA. Since cases were combined, the scope of those items changes based upon which case the plaintiff resides in. This is a great start. Caution must be exercised. Although the court Order enjoined ATF from enforcement against plaintiffs, the court also stayed the decision immediately. No action of any kind is implemented during a seven day period that gives the defendants (ATF) the ability to seek relief from a higher court. That is an important pause.
And it is almost certain that ATF will avail themselves of this opportunity to seek relief. A higher court could easily decide to stay any action until an appeal is heard. And that could take quite some time. How this will unfold is anyone's guess. I take comfort that the higher court is the Fifth Circuit and that the Fifth has shown some deference to this type of case.
A fine point that needs to be examined: These consolidated cases initially sought a two-pronged approach. The first prong challenged ATF's ability to enforce a tax statute (which is what the NFA scheme is) after the ability to tax has been removed (which was done by The Big Beautiful Bill). The second prong was a challenge to the NFA enforcement on Second Amendment grounds. All parties agreed to drop the Second Amendment prong because relief under that prong would not be greater than relief under the first prong. And that first prong was clearly a stronger challenge. The Northern District Court of Texas emphatically agreed that absent the collection of tax, the ability to enforce the NFA for those items was gone because the NFA is a tax statute. And here we are.
Here is the Final Judgment and the explanation of the judgment. It is not easy reading. That said, the Northern District Court of Texas has given careful and considered guidance for the Fifth to review. This is a marathon.
August 7, 2026
Story by Jeff Folloder: TSRA President and Acting Legislative Director
Photo: Troy Michalik: Crosshairs Texas: TSRA Hunting & Wildlife Director