Hearing Protection Act – Suppressor NFA Removal
Current understanding
The Hearing Protection Act (HR404, 119th Congress) would remove firearm silencers/suppressors from the definition of firearms subject to the National Firearms Act, eliminating the $200 NFA transfer tax stamp and associated registration/transfer restrictions on suppressors. Suppressor purchasers and transferors would pay less in federal transfer tax; the federal government would lose the associated NFA transfer tax revenue on suppressors. Status: introduced.
Evidence log
- 2025-03-27 — SHORT Act: cross-connection with short-act-sbr-nfa-removal: Parallel NFA-descheduling proposals: SHORT Act targets short-barreled rifles while the Hearing Protection Act targets suppressors — both would remove specific item categories from NFA tax and registration. (novelty: 2)
- 2025-02-03 — Hearing Protection Act: cross-connection with nfa-special-occupational-tax: Removing suppressors from NFA coverage under S.364 would shrink the universe of NFA-regulated activities to which the Special Occupational Tax attaches, indirectly affecting SOT scope even as the per-activity clarification governs remittance structure. (novelty: 2)
- 2025-01-15 — Hearing Protection Act: cross-connection with nfa-special-occupational-tax: Both concern the scope and mechanics of NFA taxation; HPA would remove suppressors from NFA (shrinking the taxable base), while the SOT clarification refines per-activity remittance for businesses still within NFA scope. (novelty: 2)