Temporary Victory For Gun Rights Groups As Judge Blocks Biden's Background Check Rule

A district judge issued a ruling on Sunday that prevents the Biden administration from fully implementing a new rule aimed at requiring gun dealers to obtain licenses and conduct background checks for firearm sales at gun shows and online.

Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who is a Donal Trump appointee, issued a temporary restraining order in Amarillo, preventing the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' rule from being enforced in Republican-led Texas or against members of several gun rights groups.

The rule, finalized last month, was set to take effect on Monday, according to Reuters.

The Biden administration aims to close a loophole that has allowed tens of thousands of guns to be sold every year by unlicensed dealers who do not perform background checks to ensure the potential buyer is not legally prohibited from having a firearm.

Judge Kaczmaryk made the order in response to a lawsuit filed by Texas, gun rights advocates, and three other Republican-led states —Louisiana, Mississippi, and Utah.

However, the judge said the three states did not demonstrate sufficient standing to contest the rule, and therefore, he refused to halt its enforcement in their jurisdictions.

All plaintiffs argued that the provisions of the rule conflicted with the text of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, a 2022 law.

Agreeing with this argument, Judge Kaczmaryk criticized the rule for failing to permit individuals who buy or sell firearms for personal protection to qualify for a statutory exemption from the licensing requirement.

The exemption is applicable to those who buy or sell guns for a "personal collection."

Kacsmaryk said this led to "the absurdity that the statute's safe harbor provision provides no safe harbor at all for the majority of gun owners."

Among the gun rights organizations covered by Kacsmaryk's order is the Gun Owners of America, which has 2 million individual members.

His injunction remains valid until June 2, pending further legal proceedings.

"I am relieved that we were able to secure a restraining order that will prevent this illegal rule from taking effect," Texas Attorney General Paxton, a Republican, said in a statement.

Kacsmaryk is the only active judge in Amarillo, making his courthouse a preferred venue for conservative litigants contesting federal government policies during the Biden administration.

He has frequently ruled in their favor, notably last year when he halted the approval of the abortion pill mifepristone. Despite this, the U.S. Supreme Court has permitted the pill to stay available while it deliberates on the case.