Starting on January 1, the $200 tax on NFA items like suppressors and short-barreled firearms will be zeroed out, thanks to language in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. If anti-gun Democrats get their way, though, the tax cut will be short-lived.
Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden and Maryland Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (both Democrats) have authored something called the Medicare Investment and Gun Violence Prevention Act, which would reimpose the NFA taxes and redirect them towards Medicare. The pair claim that the move would generate $1.7 billion for the entitlement program in the next ten years.
In a press release, Alsobrooks called the bill a "2-for-1 response to Republicans driving up health care costs and letting guns invade our communities."
When Republicans snuck in tax cuts to the Big Ugly Bill on gun silencers and short-barreled rifles, they made their position clear: guns matter more than Americans’ lives. At a time when health care costs are skyrocketing, and just days after yet another tragic school shooting, now is the time to act. Our bill will repeal the unnecessary tax cuts on deadly weapons and use the money saved for Americans’ health care, which has been decimated by Republicans."
Now hang on a second. If Alsobroks is so opposed to suppressors and short-barreled rifles, why on earth would she want to tax those items instead of banning them outright? She can complain about "gun silencers and short-barreled rifles" all she wants, but at the end of the day if people don't buy those items then Medicare doesn't get that tax revenue, which suggests that, if also Alsobrook doesn't see guns mattering more than people's lives, at the very least she's willing to put up with these items so long as the taxes on them go to her favorite programs.
Alsobrooks didn't have the most ridiculous statement in the press release, however. I think that honor has to go to Po Murray from Newtown Action Alliance; the same gun control activist who told Ryan Petty that he cares more about "assault weapons" than his daughter who was murdered at Parkland.
The so-called ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ erased these common-sense taxes, making the most dangerous weapons cheaper and easier to access. Senators Alsobrooks and Wyden are correcting that mistake by restoring the taxes and redirecting $1.7 billion to Medicare, prioritizing public safety and health care over special interests. Newtown Action Alliance implores Congress to urgently pass this legislation.”
We've all heard the phrase "common sense gun controls" or "common sense gun safety measures" countless times before, but I think this is the first time I've run across "common sense taxes."
How exactly is a suppressor, which not only protects hearing but our brains, according to research, a "dangerous weapon"? And what makes a rifle with a barrel that's 15.5 inches long any more dangerous than a rifle with a 16.5 inch barrel?
Suppressors have exploded in popularity in recent years, but they're still used in only a small handful of crimes even though it's not too difficult to make one illegally. The same is true for short-barreled firearms; relatively easy to make (so long as you don't mind breaking the law), but hardly ever used in violent crimes. Zeroing out the taxes on these commonly-owned items is what's common sense, though it would also make sense to scrap the registry of who paid this tax at the same time.
Though anti-gun Democrats are hoping to include the resurrection of NFA taxes in a summer spending bill, the odds of that happening are about as good as Joe Biden winning the 2028 presidential race. The real danger is that if Democrats take back the House and/or Senate in the midterms, they'll include similar language (and other anti-gun provisions) in must-pass spending bills starting in 2027.
I'm not complaining in the slightest by their decision-making, but I think the Dems are making a tactical mistake by telegraphing their intentions now, which will only lead to more Americans taking advantage of the opportunity to purchase these items before anti-gun politicians have the chance to once again put these taxes in place. A surge in suppressor sales was already likely to happen in the first quarter of 2026, but Alsobrooks, Wyden, and other anti-gun politicians have just given gun owners even more incentive to take advantage of the tax repeal when the new year rolls around.
