Feds Make Their Most Anti-Gun Move Yet

The Biden DOJ adopted a regulation on Wednesday classifying the components of a gun parts kit as guns that must be purchased after passing a background check similar to that needed for “traditional firearms.”

On April 11, 2022, Breitbart News published a piece on the then-proposed regulation, noting that it was intended to prohibit weapons that Democrats refer to as “ghost guns” as part of the new categorization of gun components.

Democrats refer to weapons that Americans may make themselves as “ghost guns” in their speeches. In the case of a rifle, the weapons are often constructed from an 80% receiver, or an 80% frame in the case of a handgun. Such firearms have long been a popular pastime in the United States. The 80 percent components kits are referred to as “buy, construct, shoot” kits and are classified as “firearms” under the proposed regulation by the DOJ.

The DOJ said that the regulation is now final and in effect on August 24, 2022.

In accordance with the wording of the Final Rule 2021R-05F, “partially complete frames or receivers” are now included in the definition of “receivers” or “frames.”

Other features of the regulation include those listed below, as stated in the ATF’s announcement of its finalization:

The regulation clearly states that merchants must do background checks before selling kits that include the components required for someone to easily construct a gun in order to prevent weapons from being sold to criminals with felony convictions and other banned buyers.

The regulation updates the definition of “frame” or “receiver” to make it clearer which portion of a weapon must be tagged with a serial number, even in simple-to-assemble firearm kits, in order to aid law enforcement in tracing firearms used in criminal activity.

The regulation provides standards for federally registered gunsmiths and dealers to affix serial numbers to 3D printed weapons or other un-serialized firearms they add into inventory in order to help decrease the number of unmarked and difficult-to-trace “ghost guns.”

According to a fourth description, the regulation also requires FFL holders to “retain records throughout the term of their licenses, so increasing data retention beyond the earlier requirement of 20 years.” As a result, the gun shop will have a record of the transaction, including the serial number, name, and address of the buyer, etc., which the ATF may review when they come to inspect the FFL’s record-keeping practices.