ATF’s nationwide retreat from NFA registration enforcement is restoring gun owners’ freedom, but state laws still preserve barriers. Here is the breakdown of 15 states targeted for reform, including Mississippi’s clarification that suppressor Form 4 is voluntary.
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ATF’s nationwide NFA retreat leaves state restrictions in place. Mississippi has clarified that Form 4 is voluntary for suppressors under the current policy. IMG Jim Grant
ATF has stopped enforcing specified National Firearms Act registration and approval requirements nationwide for suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns and any other weapons. Now the American Suppressor Association says the next fight includes fixing laws in 15 states that still reference the NFA.
The October 9 guidance delivers a substantial victory for gun owners. Where state law permits, suppressor buyers can complete a dealer transfer on Form 4473 without a separate Form 4, advance NFA approval or federal registration.
But federal nonenforcement does not erase state statutes. For gun owners whose states tie lawful possession to federal registration, those laws remain a barrier to enjoying the full benefit of the federal retreat.
ASA Turns to NFA-Linked State Laws
In its October 9 announcement, ASA credited the combination of legislative work and litigation for opening the door to suppressor transfers without federal registration.
The association says it helped lead the effort to eliminate the $200 tax through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, then worked with NRA, the Second Amendment Foundation, Firearms Policy Coalition and Texas State Rifle Association on Jensen v. ATF.
President Donald Trump signed the legislation on July 4, 2025. The suppressor transfer tax dropped to zero on January 1, 2026.
According to ASA, DOJ formally notified Congress on October 1 that it would not appeal, and the October 5 appeal deadline passed. ASA is now emphasizing the state-level work still ahead.
“We will continue our work in the 15 states that reference the NFA within state statutes,” the ASA said.
That commitment addresses an immediate problem: federal relief can leave gun owners facing state requirements built around the registration system Washington has stopped enforcing.
What Changed at the Gun Counter
ATF’s October 9 open letter stops requiring NFA approval before making or transferring the covered items and stops requiring their registration in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.
The court’s injunction remains limited to the plaintiffs and other specified persons. DOJ’s enforcement discretion extends the policy to everyone otherwise subject to those requirements.
Suppressor dealer transfers still require Form 4473, applicable NICS checks and ordinary Gun Control Act records. With limited exceptions, dealers may transfer suppressors to unlicensed residents of their own state. Form 3 approval is no longer required for dealer-to-dealer suppressor transfers, while applicable special occupational taxes remain.
SBRs and SBSs retain separate GCA provisions. ATF is temporarily declining to enforce the dealer-transfer authorization requirement while developing a replacement process. Interstate transportation still requires Form 20 approval.
Machine guns and destructive devices remain subject to the full NFA regime.
Why State Laws Still Matter
Some state statutes prohibit possession of specified firearms or devices while providing exceptions for items registered under federal law or held in compliance with it. Those exceptions become critical when a buyer acquires a suppressor without entering it into the federal registry.
In its published FAQ, ATF expressly declines to say whether an unregistered item held under the injunction or its enforcement policy satisfies a particular state’s requirements.
The agency will continue accepting voluntary NFA applications. Dealers also remain prohibited from transferring firearms in violation of state or local law.
For state lawmakers, the task is clear: remove provisions that keep gun owners dependent on federal registration after the federal government has stopped enforcing it. A state should not preserve the burden of an obsolete tax process by embedding that process in its own criminal code.
The 15 States Where NFA-Linked Laws Still Burden Gun Owners
On October 9, Firearms Policy Coalition identified Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin in its outreach to state attorneys general. FPC is seeking immediate nonenforcement and permanent legislative repeal.
These states do not all impose the same restriction. Some expressly require registration; others refer to federal permission or NFA compliance. The statutes below show why the federal victory has not eliminated every state barrier. Other states also have restrictions on SBRs, SBSs or AOWs; this list addresses the 15 states targeted in the current state-law initiative.
Alaska: Registration Supplies the Defense
Under AS 11.61.200(a)(3), (c) and (h), suppressors, SBRs and SBSs fall within the state’s prohibited-weapons provisions. Manufacturing, possessing, transporting, selling or transferring a prohibited weapon is forbidden, with an affirmative defense based on registration under the NFA.
A Form 4473 alone does not establish the registration specified in that defense. Federal nonenforcement leaves this state-law obstacle intact.
Colorado: A Permit-and-License Defense
C.R.S. § 18-12-102 classifies suppressors, short rifles and short shotguns as dangerous weapons and makes knowing possession a class 5 felony. An affirmative defense applies to a person holding a valid permit and license for the weapon.
The provision does not expressly name the NFA or federal registration. The problem is the permit-and-license defense when ATF no longer requires individual approval—not an explicit state command to file Form 4.
Connecticut: Federal or State Permission
Connecticut Gen. Stat. § 53a-211 makes ownership, control or possession of a suppressor or specified sawed-off shotgun a class D felony. It exempts persons and entities licensed or otherwise permitted by federal or state law to possess them.
That wording is broader than an express registration requirement. Whether federal nonenforcement satisfies the permission exception is the unresolved issue; the statute does not itself say every owner must file Form 4.
Georgia: An Express NFA-Registration Exception
O.C.G.A. §§ 16-11-123 and 16-11-124(4) prohibit possession of suppressors, sawed-off rifles, sawed-off shotguns and other listed weapons, subject to exceptions. The ordinary civilian possession exception expressly relies on registration in accordance with the NFA.
That creates a direct registration obstacle for an otherwise eligible gun owner seeking a transfer solely on Form 4473.
Georgia’s HB 1324, which proposed removing the suppressor prohibition, lost on third reading in March 2026.
Michigan: Federal Approval and Registration Paperwork
MCL 750.224 prohibits suppressors, with a federal-licensing exception. Michigan Attorney General Opinion 7260 interprets that exception to cover people licensed or approved by ATF to possess, manufacture or sell them. Removing the individual approval process therefore raises a state-law question.
MCL 750.224b separately exempts SBRs and SBSs lawfully made, transferred or possessed under federal law. But subsection (5) requires owners of those firearms greater than 26 inches long to carry a copy of federal registration while transporting or using them.
Violations can lead to a civil fine, seizure and eventual forfeiture. Firearms 26 inches or shorter have additional state requirements under subsection (4).
Mississippi: Attorney General Confirms Form 4 Is Voluntary
Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch issued an October 12 statement concluding that Form 4 is voluntary for suppressor buyers under the current federal policy.
“It is our opinion that ATF Form 4 for suppressors is voluntary for Mississippians as well,” Fitch said.
BREAKING: According to the Mississippi AG:
“it is our opinion that ATF Form 4 for suppressors is voluntary for Mississippians.”
Thank you for your leadership @LynnFitchAG! We look forward to working with you and your team to clarify the law during the 2027 legislative session!
— American Suppressor Association (@AmSuppressor) October 13, 2026
Miss. Code § 97-37-31 ties suppressor manufacture, sale and possession to federal authorization. Fitch concluded that ATF’s October 9 guidance makes Form 4 voluntary under that existing language. This resolves the ambiguity identified earlier without repealing the statute.
ASA welcomed the announcement and said it looks forward to working with Fitch during the 2027 legislative session.
Fitch plans to seek legislation removing the federal-law reference and amendments to related provisions, including § 97-37-1, which restricts concealed carrying of suppressors through fines or imprisonment. She credited NRA and ASA with helping identify needed amendments.
Mississippi’s clarification is progress toward r
