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The fight over suppressors just took a serious step toward the Supreme Court.
The Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms has filed an amicus brief urging the high court to take up George Peterson v. United States, a case that could directly challenge the National Firearms Act’s tax and registration requirements on suppressors.
And if the Court agrees to hear it? This could be a big one.
At the center of the case is a simple argument: suppressors (often mislabeled as “silencers”) are protected arms under the Second Amendment. If that’s true, CCRKBA argues, then taxing and requiring registration for them isn’t just outdated… It’s unconstitutional.
Joining CCRKBA in the brief is a heavy-hitting coalition, including the Second Amendment Foundation, National Rifle Association, American Suppressor Association, and several state-level groups.
In other words, this isn’t a fringe effort. It’s coordinated.
CCRKBA Executive Director Andrew Gottlieb didn’t hold back, arguing that the case gives the Court a chance to finally end what he described as decades of treating the Second Amendment like a “second-class right.”
And that’s really the core issue here.
The National Firearms Act has regulated suppressors for nearly a century, requiring registration and imposing what was originally a steep tax designed to limit access.
Critics say that framework was never about safety. It was about restriction.
Now, with recent Supreme Court decisions reinforcing Second Amendment protections, groups like CCRKBA see an opening to challenge those legacy laws head-on.
The argument goes beyond suppressors. It touches something bigger: Can the government tax a constitutional right?
Because if suppressors are deemed protected arms, that $200 tax stamp and the entire registration system behind it could be on shaky ground.
Of course, none of that happens unless the Supreme Court agrees to hear the case. For now, this is about getting through the door.
But if cert is granted? This could become one of the most important Second Amendment cases in years.
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