WASHINGTON, D.C. — NSSF®, The Firearm Industry Trade Association, commends the introduction of the Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. U.S. Rep. Mike Bost(R-Ill.), Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, along with Rep. Morgan Lutrell (R-Texas), introduced H.R. 1041, and Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), along with Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, introduced S. 478. The two pieces of legislation would ensure that no Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) bureaucrat can strip a veteran with a fiduciary of their rights to keep and bear arms without a judge or court ruling first that the veteran is a danger to themselves or their community.
Chairman Bost’s bill has 40 cosponsors. Sen. Kennedy’s legislation has 15 cosponsors.
“This legislation will ensure that veterans are not improperly added as a prohibited person on the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System simply because they need assistance with financial matters. Needing a fiduciary alone does not disqualify a veteran from legally purchasing a firearm at retail,” said Lawrence G. Keane, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, NSSF. “We owe our freedoms to veterans who fought to preserve all our rights. Congress should ensure that veterans’ Second Amendment rights are protected when it comes to the Department of Veterans Affairs. NSSF is grateful for the leadership and advocacy of Chairman Bost, Senator Kennedey and Senator Moran, on behalf of veterans.”
NSSF has been a longtime advocate to fix this bureaucratic oversight that has resulted in veterans’ names being submitted to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) because they are in need of a fiduciary, or someone to assist with their finances. Needing a fiduciary is not a prohibiting factor to deny any individual the ability to legally purchase or possess a firearm. No one – much less a law-abiding veteran – should have their ability to lawfully acquire a firearm at retail – without Due Process.
This issue of veterans’ names being submitted to FBI NICS as prohibited individuals was suspended in the FY 2024 MilCon/VA Approporations bill and subsequent two continuing resolutions. However, that is a temporary fix that will expire on March 14, 2025. This legislation, introduced both in the House and Senate, would resolve this bureaucratic oversight by protecting the Second Amendment rights of veterans who have served their nation to defend those rights for all.
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About NSSF
NSSF is the trade association for the firearm industry. Its mission is to promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports. Formed in 1961, NSSF has a membership of thousands of manufacturers, distributors, firearm retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen’s organizations and publishers nationwide. For more information, visit nssf.org.
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