The Wire · CalGunHub

DOJ Lets Texas NFA Injunction Take Effect for Suppressor, SBR Plaintiffs

Published August 13, 2026 · Updated October 12, 2026

After the Justice Department declined to seek a further stay, a federal injunction barring NFA registration enforcement for zero-tax items became operative on August 13 for covered parties.

Written by the CalGunHub desk from public reporting

Who this affects: California independently prohibits civilian possession of suppressors, short-barreled rifles, and short-barreled shotguns under state law, and the Texas injunction does not alter those statutes. Both NSSF and USA Carry noted that state and local restrictions are unaffected by the ruling. The order changes nothing about what may be possessed inside California, regardless of whether a person falls within the injunction's coverage. This is general information, not legal advice.

A permanent injunction against parts of the National Firearms Act became operative on August 13, 2026, after the Justice Department chose not to ask for a continued stay. Judge James Wesley Hendrix of the Northern District of Texas had ruled eight days earlier in Silencer Shop Foundation v. ATF, consolidated with Jensen v. ATF (No. 6:25-CV-056-H), that the NFA's registration and transfer provisions could no longer rest on the taxing power for categories whose making and transfer taxes were reduced to zero dollars by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act: suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns, and any-other-weapons.

The judgment carried a seven-day stay that expired August 12 with no action from the government, and the injunction took effect at 12:01 a.m. the next morning. The first suppressor transfers without an approved Form 4 were reported in Texas at that moment. The order is party-specific rather than nationwide. It covers the named plaintiffs, members of the plaintiff organizations, which include Gun Owners of America, Gun Owners Foundation, the Texas State Rifle Association, CCRKBA, FPC Action Foundation, and FRAC, and customers of the plaintiff companies SilencerCo, Palmetto State Armory, Hot Shots Custom, and B&T USA.

Machine guns and destructive devices remain fully regulated under the NFA with their 200-dollar tax intact, and Gun Control Act requirements such as the Form 4473 and NICS checks still apply to covered transfers. Interstate transport rules and SOT provisions were not enjoined. USA Carry reported September 21, citing CBS News, that President Trump personally directed the department not to appeal; a department spokesperson said only that ATF would act on guidance. On September 4, thirteen Senate Democrats, including California's Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, wrote to the Attorney General demanding that DOJ resume defending the statute.

The industry group NSSF cautioned on August 17 that significant questions remain open, including whether a separate statute still requires Attorney General authorization for SBR and SBS transfers and how unregistered items intersect with state laws keyed to NFA registration.

Informational only, not legal advice. Facts are attributed to the sources listed above.