| 1 | 1 | | 88R9398 BPG-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Cain H.C.R. No. 31 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | CONCURRENT RESOLUTION |
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| 6 | 6 | | WHEREAS, The United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, |
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| 7 | 7 | | Firearms and Explosives signed its final rule 2021R-08F, "Factoring |
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| 8 | 8 | | Criteria for Firearms with Attached 'Stabilizing Braces,'" on |
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| 9 | 9 | | January 13, 2023; and |
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| 10 | 10 | | WHEREAS, This rule outlines the factors ATF would consider |
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| 11 | 11 | | when evaluating firearms equipped with a purported "stabilizing |
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| 12 | 12 | | brace" or other rearward attachment in order to determine whether |
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| 13 | 13 | | these weapons would be deemed a "rifle" or "short-barreled rifle" |
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| 14 | 14 | | under the Gun Control Act of 1968, or a "rifle" or "firearm" subject |
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| 15 | 15 | | to regulation under the National Firearms Act; and |
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| 16 | 16 | | WHEREAS, Under this rule, citizens who possess braced |
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| 17 | 17 | | firearms will have 120 days to register, destroy, or reconfigure |
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| 18 | 18 | | them, or to turn them over to the ATF; failure to do so could result |
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| 19 | 19 | | in serious criminal charges, placing the owners of up to 40 million |
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| 20 | 20 | | guns at risk of $250,000 in fines and a severe prison sentence; and |
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| 21 | 21 | | WHEREAS, The NFA division of the ATF is notoriously prone to |
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| 22 | 22 | | missing its own performance benchmarks; wait times for approval of |
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| 23 | 23 | | ATF forms and tax stamps routinely extend from 300 to 400 days; the |
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| 24 | 24 | | addition of 40 million firearms to the waitlist is likely to worsen |
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| 25 | 25 | | already unacceptable wait times, creating a legal limbo for owners |
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| 26 | 26 | | forced to comply with this new registration scheme, which is |
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| 27 | 27 | | clearly in violation of the Second Amendment to the |
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| 28 | 28 | | U.S. Constitution; and |
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| 29 | 29 | | WHEREAS, Fortunately, the Congressional Review Act allows |
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| 30 | 30 | | members of Congress to introduce a Joint Resolution of Disapproval |
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| 31 | 31 | | to reverse any agency rule or action they deem unconstitutional; by |
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| 32 | 32 | | this means, Congress can remedy a subversion of the lawmaking |
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| 33 | 33 | | process that is putting the rights and liberty of gun owners at |
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| 34 | 34 | | risk; now, therefore, be it |
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| 35 | 35 | | RESOLVED, That the 88th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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| 36 | 36 | | hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to overturn the |
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| 37 | 37 | | "Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached 'Stabilizing |
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| 38 | 38 | | Braces'" rule via the Congressional Review Act; and, be it further |
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| 39 | 39 | | RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official |
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| 40 | 40 | | copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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| 41 | 41 | | the speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the |
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| 42 | 42 | | Senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of the |
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| 43 | 43 | | Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this |
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| 44 | 44 | | resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a |
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| 45 | 45 | | memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |
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