‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Scraps Al Capone-Era Tax On Sawed-Off Shotguns & Short-Barreled Rifles

Submitted by Gun Owners of America, 

On Monday, the Senate Finance Committee released the current text for the Reconciliation Bill, also known as the “Big Beautiful Bill.”

In the text, Republican Senators have removed Short Barreled Rifles, Short Barreled Shotguns and “Any Other Weapons” (a catch-all term used to restrict other types of firearms not originally covered by the NFA) from the taxation, and therefore the entire tax scheme of the National Firearms Act (NFA).

BREAKING

The @SenFinance Cmte. has improved the One Big Beautiful Bill to FULLY REPEAL the National Firearms Act excise taxes on:

Suppressors
Short-Barreled Rifles
Short-Barreled Shotguns
Any other Weapons

This is a massive victory for the Second Amendment!

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) June 16, 2025

Previously, House Republicans added similar GOA-backed language to the reconciliation bill that removed suppressors from the taxation and registration outlined in the 1934 NFA. 

BREAKING⁰⁰The House of Representatives passes GOA-backed language 215-214 to ELIMINATE the unconstitutional taxation & registration of suppressors under the NFA.⁰⁰The bill heads to the Senate, where GOA will fight to include protections for short-barreled firearms too. pic.twitter.com/4cRqgi4LHl

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) May 22, 2025

Now, the next step for the bill is to pass the Senate’s infamous “Byrd Rule.” A process where provisions in a bill are tested to see if they are primarily tax-focused or policy-focused.

If a provision is primarily policy-focused, it fails the test, and the provision is stripped from the bill.

Thankfully, the proposed changes to the NFA should pass the Byrd rule process with flying colors—as long as the Senate Parliamentarian is honest and unbiased in her ruling.

That’s because the NFA is primarily a tax. 

UPDATE

Next, the One Big Beautiful Bill will undergo the “Byrd Bath”—a process by which Senators can raise issues to strike any non-budget policy provisions.

Fortunately for gun owners, the National Firearms Act of 1934 is primarily a $200 excise tax! https://t.co/0VOUXfcjVc

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) June 16, 2025

However, like anything else in Washington, D.C., we shouldn’t celebrate until the bill is signed with these provisions included.

Make sure to keep up the pressure on your elected officials by calling (202) 224-3121 and reminding them that you want to keep the removal of the tax on suppressors and short-barreled firearms in the Big Beautiful Bill. 

Pressure from grassroots gun owners calling their congress members got us this far, and that same pressure will keep these provisions in the bill when it heads to President Trump’s desk for signing into law.

This is a HUGE step in GOA’s fight to restore your Second Amendment rights and strikes a major blow to the draconian NFA!

But as you know, the job is not finished yet. Keep calling your senators!

202-224-3121 https://t.co/n1sqlj1ehR

— Gun Owners of America (@GunOwners) June 17, 2025

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