Many of you may not be affected by AR-15 pistol braces or even gun parts kits (aka “Ghost Guns). However, the ruling on parts kits could have farther reaching implications for those of us who believe in the rule of law not bureaucratic tyranny.
Summary on pistol braces ruling: An injunction has been issued by a district court that prevents the enforcement of the AR pistol brace ruling by the ATF via Biden Executive Order.
The case, Britto v. ATF, challenged the “Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached ‘Stabilizing Braces’” rule. The ATF created the regulation after an executive order by President Joe Biden directing the Bureau to deal with pistol braces. The ATF would reverse years of classification letters and revoke previous determinations issued to brace manufacturers. Related article.
It is highly likely it will be appealed by the Department of Justice. In the meantime, no one is violating the law having a pistol brace on their AR pistol or other similar handgun.
Summary on parts kits ruling: Parts kits are basically 80% or less finished firearms frames that have not been regulated by the ATF as they fell under the umbrella of privately made firearms (PMFs) which has been legal. The most important thing about this ruling by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals is that they detail why the executive branch cannot create law without legislative action. This is the fault of Congress, for decades they have created laws on all issues that delegate the authority of the details to the executive branch departments/agencies.
This is what has caused chaos mostly for non-firearm related issues. Congress has gotten lazy they want to pass laws without actually writing the text and meaning of the law leaving it to be defined by bureaucrats who inject the will of the department head or their own philosophical/political views. It is not unusual for new administrations to come in and change the meaning of a law via the bureaucratic deep state. Hopefully this will carry over to other legal challenges that will force Congress to do their job and write the laws not just the title of the law.
Obama appointed Cass Sunstein served as the administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. When asked by Obama what position he wanted he said White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs because it was the most, “Powerful” position as you could define and change laws and regulation. That’s the job of Congress not an appointed bureaucrat, but that is what we still have.
Kurt D. Engelhardt, Circuit Judge concerning parts kits ruling: It has long been said—correctly—that the law is the expression of legislative will.1 As such, the best evidence of the legislature’s intent is the carefully chosen words placed purposefully into the text of a statute by our duly-elected representatives. Critically, then, law-making power—the ability to transform policy into real-world obligations—lies solely with the legislative branch. 2 Where an executive agency engages in what is, for all intents and purposes, “law-making,” the legislature is deprived of its primary function under our Constitution, and our citizens are robbed of their right to fair representation in government. This is especially true when the executive rule-turned-law criminalizes conduct without the say of the people who are subject to its penalties.
It is highly likely it will be appealed by the ATF and Department of Justice. In the meantime, no one is violating the law having a pistol brace on their AR pistol or other similar handgun.
