The Meaning of "Firearm" and "Frame or Receiver" in the Federal Gun Control Act: ATF's 2022 Final Rule in Light of Text, Precedent, and History

Abstract

            In 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice promulgated new regulations that greatly expand the definition of a “firearm” under the Gun Control Act (GCA), which is enforced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).   The Final Rule changes the statutory definition of “firearm” and overrides ATF’s definition of “frame or receiver” adopted with enactment of the GCA in 1968.

            Part One demonstrates how the Final Rule violates both the statutory text and applicable precedents.  The text defines “firearm” as an operable weapon or one that is designed to or may be readily converted to fire.  It also includes the “frame or receiver” of any such weapon without the designed or convertible modifiers.  In its 1968 definition, ATF’s predecessor agency defined a frame or receiver as the housing that contains a firearm’s internal mechanisms.

            The GCA authorizes the Attorney General to prescribe “only such rules and regulations as are necessary to carry out the provisions” of the GCA.

            The Rule adds a “weapon parts kit” to the definition of “firearm.”  But without a frame or receiver, mere “parts” do not constitute a firearm. 

            The Rule departs from the ordinary meaning of a frame or receiver by including a “partially complete, disassembled, or nonfunctional frame or receiver” and a “multi-piece frame or receiver.” 

            The Rule requires dealers to inscribe serial numbers on privately made firearms, a requirement the GCA imposes only on manufacturers and importers.

            The Rule imposes undue restrictions on the acquisition of firearms by law-abiding citizens and violates the Second Amendment.

            Part Two demonstrates that the Rule is a radical departure from the GCA as informed by its statutory and administrative history.  The Federal Firearms Act (FFA) of 1938 defined “firearm” both as a weapon and as “any part or parts” thereof.  It also made it an offense to violate the statute or any regulation thereunder. 

            FFA regulations and rulings were rendered on barreled actions, firearms in knockdown condition, and frames or receivers.  Serial numbers were required on some types of firearms beginning in 1958. 

            Legislative drafting on what developed into the Gun Control Act began in the early 1960s.  “Firearm” came to be defined what it is today, with “part or parts” deleted and “frame or receiver” inserted.  Congress rejected making violation of a regulation to be a crime.

The meaning of “frame or receiver” adopted by the agency in 1968 reflected common usage of the term.  It was recognized that both parts of a two-part frame or receiver are necessary to constitute a frame or receiver.

The Firearm Owner’s Protection Act of 1986 reduced ATF’s regulatory power.  It left untouched the agency’s definition of frame or receiver.

            VanDerStok v. Garland, 86 F.4th 179 (5^th Cir. 2023), held the Final Rule’s redefinitions of “firearm” and of “frame or receiver” to be arbitrary and capricious.  The Supreme Court granted the government’s petition for a writ of certiorari and is hearing the case in its 2024 Term.