Gun Owners of America (GOA) is ramping up pressure on Congress to pass H.R. 2395, the Stop Harassing Owners of Rifles Today Act – better known as the SHORT Act. The legislation, introduced by Rep. Andrew Clyde (R-GA) and reintroduced in the Senate by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS), aims to strip away nearly a century of regulations on short-barreled rifles (SBRs), short-barreled shotguns (SBSs), and other weapons defined by the National Firearms Act (NFA).
GOA Director of Federal Affairs Aidan Johnston called the law “archaic,” adding that the Biden-era pistol brace rule was the latest example of how the NFA has been “weaponized” against millions of lawful gun owners. “The SHORT Act will repeal short barrel restrictions from the National Firearms Act of 1934 and prevent them from ever being weaponized again,” Johnston said in a statement.
What the SHORT Act Actually Does
According to the official bill text, the SHORT Act would amend Section 5845 of the Internal Revenue Code to remove short-barreled rifles, shotguns, and “any other weapon” (AOWs) from the NFA’s firearm definition. This would eliminate federal taxes, registration requirements, and background checks specifically for those weapons, putting them on the same legal footing as standard rifles or handguns.
The bill would also destroy all related ATF records within one year of passage. That includes current registrations, transfer applications, and manufacturing records for affected weapons. Supporters of the bill argue that these records are part of a creeping gun registry and that their destruction is critical to safeguarding privacy and liberty.
The Fight Over Pistol Braces and the Biden ATF
The SHORT Act is largely a response to the Biden Administration’s reinterpretation of stabilizing braces – a policy change that turned millions of braced pistols into regulated short-barreled rifles overnight. Senator Marshall stated that Americans were forced into a corner: either surrender their firearms or join a de facto registry through the ATF’s “Amnesty Registration of Pistol Brace Weapons” program.
Marshall told GOA’s Eric Pratt in a video interview that the Biden ATF’s actions were particularly harmful in rural areas. “We don’t have a police officer at every corner where I live,” Marshall said. “Farmers and ranchers need to defend themselves… the short-barreled rifle is the weapon of choice for many Americans, especially women.”
GOA’s Message: “Pick Up the Phone”
In a GOA video dealing with this, host Ben Sanderson urged supporters to flood Congress with calls. “We’re calling on our members to call the House Ways and Means Committee and tell them to pass H.R. 2395,” Sanderson said. He emphasized that removing short-barrel weapons from the NFA is essential to block future reinterpretations and to prevent the ATF from continuing what many see as backdoor gun control.
GOA is also tying this bill to other reform efforts like the Hearing Protection Act, which would remove suppressors from the NFA. According to Sanderson, the goal is not just to tweak the NFA but to gut it completely.
Backing From Capitol Hill
The SHORT Act has strong Republican support. In the House, it has 48 co-sponsors – all Republicans. On the Senate side, Sen. Marshall’s reintroduction of the bill has been backed by a coalition of conservatives including Sens. Cynthia Lummis, Rick Scott, Tommy Tuberville, Kevin Cramer, and more. Each of them released statements emphasizing constitutional protections and railing against ATF overreach.
Sen. Lummis said the bill would fix the “unworkable Pistol Brace Rule,” while Sen. Ricketts called the Biden administration’s policy “a violation of the Constitution” and praised the SHORT Act for protecting “millions of law-abiding gun owners.”
The National Association for Gun Rights Joins the Fight
Hunter King, Director of Political Affairs at the National Association for Gun Rights (NAGR), also praised the bill. “This isn’t a measly reform; it’s a declaration of Second Amendment supremacy,” King said. He added that it would finally “free gun owners from the burdensome and outdated regulations of the National Firearms Act.”
NAGR’s support reinforces the growing alliance of gun rights organizations treating the SHORT Act as a turning point. If passed, it would mark the first major rollback of NFA restrictions since the law was enacted in 1934.
Guns & Gadgets: “We Should Be Angry”
But there’s a snag. According to Jared Yanis, host of the Guns & Gadgets 2nd Amendment News channel, the SHORT Act has not made it out of the House Ways and Means Committee. “The Short Act? Not even in there,” he said in a fiery video update. Yanis claimed committee members either feared backlash or lacked the political will to carry the bill forward.
He called on viewers to “stay angry” and keep contacting lawmakers, pointing out that although the suppressor transfer fee was removed from one section of the bill, the NFA registry would remain intact. “This is terrible. If I may – it’s horsesh*t,” Yanis said bluntly.
Fear of Political Backlash?
Yanis also speculated that some Republicans may be backing off due to fears of appearing too pro-gun ahead of the 2026 midterms. He urged viewers to hammer their representatives on social media and by phone. “We, the people, need to be we, the people,” he said, warning that watered-down reforms could become meaningless crumbs designed to pacify the firearms community without offering real change.
Yanis’s report reflects frustration within the grassroots gun rights movement – especially since the bill, according to him, represents the closest this generation has come to dismantling key parts of the NFA.
A Battle Against Bureaucracy
Sen. Marshall has been vocal about the role of unelected officials in pushing gun restrictions. “There is no reason for unelected D.C. bureaucrats to have the power to unilaterally undermine Americans’ Second Amendment rights,” he said in his press release. This theme is echoed throughout the SHORT Act’s language, which not only deregulates firearms but also overrides state-level taxes and licensing requirements tied to the NFA.
Section 5 of the bill includes federal preemption language, stripping state governments of the ability to add taxes or restrictions to SBRs or SBSs in interstate commerce. It’s a full-court press to eliminate NFA-style regulation at all levels of government.
A Long Shot in the Senate?
Even with GOA’s pressure and Republican backing, Marshall admits that passing the bill in the Senate will be difficult. In his GOA interview, he said the challenge would be finding seven Democrats willing to vote yes. “The only chance we got is if your members engage and start reaching out,” he told supporters.
With Democrats controlling the Senate and a presidential veto a looming threat, even getting the SHORT Act to the floor may be a tall order. But for GOA and its allies, the political battle itself is part of the strategy, forcing legislators to take a position on gun control ahead of the next election cycle.
A Moment That Demands Courage
From a broader perspective, this fight isn’t just about short barrels or stabilizing braces – it’s about how the government interprets power. If unelected bureaucrats can reclassify gun parts and criminalize millions of Americans overnight, then the Second Amendment becomes a permission slip, not a guarantee.
The SHORT Act is more than a bill – it’s a litmus test for Congress. Will lawmakers side with the Constitution, or with regulatory creep? Will they finally stand up to a nearly 100-year-old law designed in a different era for different weapons? Or will they continue pretending that modern firearms require 1930s-style controls?
The Next 90 Days
As it stands, the SHORT Act remains introduced but stalled in committee. The House may be the easier fight, but the Senate is the real battleground. GOA, NAGR, and others are counting on grassroots gun owners to apply relentless pressure, through phone calls, emails, and public comments, to keep the momentum alive.
Until then, the National Firearms Act still holds the power to define and limit the tools Americans can use to defend themselves – unless Congress decides to end that authority once and for all.
A former park ranger and wildlife conservationist, Lisa’s passion for survival started with her deep connection to nature. Raised on a small farm in northern Wisconsin, she learned how to grow her own food, raise livestock, and live off the land. Lisa is our dedicated Second Amendment news writer and also focuses on homesteading, natural remedies, and survival strategies. Lisa aims to help others live more sustainably and prepare for the unexpected.
