HR-3139 : Still Just a Bill

Hearing Protection Act of 2017

This bill amends the Internal Revenue Code: (1) to remove silencers from the list of firearms subject to regulation under the National Firearms Act (NFA), and (2) to specify that a person who lawfully acquires or possesses a silencer under provisions of the federal criminal code meets the registration and licensing requirements of the NFA.

Additionally, the bill amends the federal criminal code:

• to preempt state or local laws that tax or regulate firearm silencers,
• to exclude a muffler or silencer from the list of firearms subject to regulation,
• to eliminate mandatory minimum prison terms for a crime of violence or drug trafficking offense in which a defendant uses or carries a firearm equipped with a silencer, and
• to permit active and retired law enforcement officers to carry a concealed silencer.