Pro-gun rights

WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 11, 2025) – Today, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) urged the U.S. Senate to hold the line and pass President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” with the legislation’s current suppressor reforms intact.

GOA Rallies Media Allies and Influencers to Demand Senate Action on Suppressor and SBR Reform 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

June 10, 2025 

Washington, D.C. — Gun Owners of America (GOA), joined by over 40 prominent media voices, influencers, and Second Amendment organizations representing a combined audience of more than one billion monthly viewers, has sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo demanding immediate pro-gun action in the upcoming reconciliation package. 

The coalition is urging the Senate to adopt two key reforms: 

1. Section 3 of the Hearing Protection Act, which ensures that gun owners in anti-gun states are protected when purchasing suppressors in accordance with federal law. 

1. The Stop Harassing Owners of Rifles Today (SHORT) Act, which would eliminate the unconstitutional National Firearms Act (NFA) tax and registry requirements for short-barreled rifles and shotguns. 

While the House’s inclusion of Section 2 of the Hearing Protection Act was a positive step, omitting Section 3 would continue to leave millions of gun owners vulnerable to criminal prosecution in states that defy federal preemption. The inclusion of the SHORT Act would likewise deal a final blow to the ATF’s war on pistol braces and restore constitutional protections for popular firearms targeted by the NFA’s arbitrary barrel length rules. 

Erich Pratt, Senior Vice President of Gun Owners of America, issued the following statement: 

“The House opened the door—now the Senate must walk through it. The inclusion of Section 3 of the Hearing Protection Act and the full SHORT Act is essential to restoring the rights of law-abiding Americans and rolling back unconstitutional mandates that the ATF has used for decades to harass gun owners. The time to act is now.” 

Aidan Johnston, Director of Federal Affairs for Gun Owners of America, issued the following statement: 

“This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to dismantle the worst parts of the NFA and protect millions of gun owners from outdated, abusive laws. GOA is proud to lead this coalition, and we’re calling on Senate Republicans to finish the job and deliver for the grassroots.” 

GOA spokesmen are available for interviews. Gun Owners of America is a nonprofit grassroots lobbying organization dedicated to protecting the right to keep and bear arms without compromise. GOA represents over two million members and activists. For more information, visit GOA’s Press Center. 

-GOA- 

The resurrected “Assault Weapons” ban we alerted you to last week has unfortunately passed the House and is on its way to the Senate.

We’d like to reiterate that this fight isn’t over yet, and we can’t lay off even for a moment if we expect to hold the line on keeping semi-automatic firearms legal in Rhode Island.

This bill includes much more than just firearm bans. To directly quote House Minority Leader Chippendale’s press release from June 3rd:

“The bill also places an unfunded mandate on local police departments, requiring them to implement a so-called “voluntary certification” program. But let’s be honest – there is nothing voluntary about it. If a citizen is found in possession of a “grandfathered” firearm without this certificate, they will be subject to criminal penalties. That’s not voluntary – that’s coerced compliance.”

It was also brought to our attention through House Minority Leader Chippendale’s testimony, that H 5436 would devastate the sporting clay industry in Rhode Island, as it includes bans on all semi-automatic shotguns with threaded chokes.

Stopping H 5436 will be an immense effort, and we need you to continue hitting the phonelines to DEMAND your legislators stop it from passing.

When speaking to a Senator or their staff, you can say something like this:

“Hello, my name is [NAME] and I’m from [TOWN/CITY]. I’m a member of Gun Owners of America and a Rhode Island voter and I encourage you to vote NO on H 5436 when it comes up for a vote. Gun Owners of America will keep me informed of how you vote.”

This bill may be called up in the Senate Judiciary Committee before it heads to the floor. The list of committee members can be seen here:

​Senator Matthew L. LaMountain – (401) 206-0822

Senator Mark ​McKenney – (401) 578-6258

Senator Jacob E. Bissaillon – (401) 442-6973

Senator John P. Burke – (401) 374-4721

Senator Andrew R. Dimitri – (401) 276-5563

Senator Dawn Euer – (401) 276-5561

Senator Thomas J. Paolino – (401) 222-2708

Senator Todd M. Patalano – (401) 276-5592

Senator Ana B. Quezada – (401) 255-0345

Senator Leonidas P. Raptakis – (401) 276-5567

You can find your State Senator by using this tool from the Rhode Island Department of State: Find my legislator. If you already know who your legislator is, you can use the Senate directory found here: State Senate of Rhode Island.

Reach out to your Senators immediately using the form above and demand that they STOP H 5436!

WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 10, 2025) — Today, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) hailed the Supreme Court’s unanimous decision in Smith & Wesson, Inc., et al. v. Estados Unidos Mexicanos, which applied the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) against the Mexican government’s frivolous lawsuit against gun manufacturers including Smith & Wesson, Barrett Firearms Manufacturing, Beretta U.S.A., Glock, Sturm, Ruger & Company, Interstate Arms, Century International Arms, and Colt’s Manufacturing Company. You can read FPC’s brief in support of review here, merits-stage brief here, and the Supreme Court’s opinion here.

CHICAGO (June 9, 2025) – Today, Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) asked the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold its critical victory over the Illinois “Protect Illinois Communities Act” (PICA) gun control regulations, which bans so-called “assault weapons” and “large capacity” magazines. FPC’s brief says that the “question presented by this case is whether the Second Amendment allows Illinois to ban the best-selling rifle in America and its standard magazine. The answer,” FPC argues, “is no.”

One thing in life is certain: When a member of Congress sees a phone call come through from a GOA member, they panic.

After the House of Representatives got a nonstop earful from gun owners like you, we scored a major win. Just take a look at what Braden Langley had to say about our victory.

The GOA-backed Hearing Protection Act was added to President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” (H.R. 1).

That means:

• No more $200 tax stamps
• No more government registration
• No more databases tracking law-abiding gun owners

But we’re not stopping there.

Your God-given right to keep and bear arms is not a “privilege” – and when Congress finally does one thing right, it’s not some grand favor to gun owners. It’s exactly what the Constitution requires that they do!

That’s why GOA is launching another grassroots advocacy campaign to further gut the NFA by forcing the Senate to add the SHORT Act to the reconciliation bill.

The SHORT Act – Stop Harassing Owners of Rifles Today – would remove short-barreled rifles (SBRs), short-barreled shotguns (SBSs), and Any Other Weapons (AOWs) from the NFA.

I’ll tell you why that’s so important…

Joe Biden’s ATF already reclassified pistol braces as SBRs, which was a backdoor attempt to force millions of lawful gun owners into NFA registration or risk becoming felons overnight.

I’m sure you can imagine a future President Gavin Newsom taking Biden’s abuse even further – expanding NFA definitions to criminalize millions more overnight.

But if the SHORT Act gets added to President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill,” there would be no NFA effectively left to weaponize against gun owners.

That’s why we need gun owners like YOU to bombard your Senators with phone calls urging them to add the SHORT Act into H.R. 1.

Call your Senators at (202) 224-3121.

Or, if you’d rather speak directly with the Senate Finance Committee, you can reach them at (202) 224-4515.

GOA will not rest until the NFA has been entirely ripped to shreds, and your God-given rights are restored.

To help us finish the job, please consider making a contribution to our 2A Defense Fund.

The White House has just proposed a dangerous plan to merge the ATF and the DEA. This isn’t about streamlining government—it’s a Trojan Horse that threatens our Second Amendment rights like never before.

What This Merger Could Mean for Gun Owners

X A Bigger, More Powerful ATF:

The merger would triple the ATF’s budget and quadruple its tactical units, creating a supercharged agency with even less oversight and accountability.

X Increased Threats to Your Rights:

A combined ATF-DEA would have over 10,000 new employees, amplifying the potential for overreach, harassment, and unconstitutional actions against gun owners.

X A Step Toward Gun Control:

This isn’t about abolishing the ATF. It’s about empowering it to further infringe on your God-given right to keep and bear arms.

GOA has fought the ATF’s overreach for decades, from their illegal gun registry to their attacks on law-abiding gun dealers.

We won’t stand idly by while this merger threatens to create a monster agency that could further erode our freedoms, but we need your help to stop it.

Sign the petition, urging the White House NOT to merge the ATF and the DEA into one agency.

The ATF has a long history of targeting law-abiding Americans, shutting down gun stores for minor clerical errors, surveilling pro-gun communities, and even resorting to violence against citizens. Merging it with the DEA only makes it stronger and harder to hold accountable. We can’t let this happen.

Click here to sign the pre-written letter to the White House and help GOA defeat the ATF-DEA merger.

SIGN THE LETTER

Call the Senate Finance Committee at (202) 224-4515 to save pistol-braced firearms.

NOTE: Don’t hesitate to leave a message if you’re transferred to an answering machine.

Thanks to the LOUD and relentless voices of GOA members and grassroots activists like you, the House recently passed a major pro-gun victory.

This is What YOUR Activism Accomplished!

H.R. 1, the budget reconciliation bill, includes the full Hearing Protection Act — which completely REMOVES suppressors from the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA).

No more $200 tax stamps
No more government registration
No more databases tracking law-abiding gun owners

This is the freedom we’ve been fighting for. And we’re not stopping here.

The next battle? The SHORT Act — a GOA-backed bill to eliminate ALL federal restrictions on short-barreled rifles, shotguns, and “any other weapons” (AOWs).

If this language is added to H.R. 1, we can take another sledgehammer to the NFA.

But we need your help RIGHT NOW.

Call the Senate Finance Committee at 202-228-0554 to push for the SHORT Act language to be included in H.R. 1. Hearing from constituents will show the committee they have tremendous support from gun owners across the nation!

H.R. 1 is now in the Senate Finance Committee. And this committee is THE ONE committee that can easily include this language into H.R. 1.

Once this is done, we will only need 51 votes — a simple majority — to pass this on the Senate floor. No filibuster. No excuses.

Why it matters: Joe Biden weaponized the NFA to ban millions of pistol-braced firearms. The SHORT Act would end that abuse of power once and for all.

Here’s what you can do:

• Call the Senate Finance Committee—at (202) 224-4515—and urge them to insert the SHORT Act into H.R. 1
• Share this alert with every gun owner you know
• Chip in to help GOA keep up the pressure on Capitol Hill

Your calls made a huge difference on the House side. Now let’s take action in the Senate and finish tearing down the NFA. Please call now.