Comment on the Brace Rescission or Watch It Die in the Next Administration

Take inventory of what is actually final versus what is still a proposal — because the ATF is counting on you to treat a press release like a victory lap.

The April 29 New Era of Reform package spans thirty-four notices. Some rules are final today — including the removal of bump-stock language from ATF's machine-gun definitions after Garland v. Cargill. Others, including the formal proposal to rescind the 2023 pistol-brace rule, remain notices of proposed rulemaking. The agency updated its public reform hub on May 28. That update matters: it confirms which fights are won and which are still open.

Federal courts had already blocked brace enforcement in multiple jurisdictions. Mock v. Garland and FRAC v. Garland did the heavy lifting. Blanche and Cekada are codifying what judges already said — but codifying through the APA comment process, not by magic.

That distinction is not academic. A proposed repeal can be withdrawn. A final rule is harder to reverse. Gun owners who spent three years storing braces in safes because an agency letter said they might be felons should not reconfigure twice because nobody submitted comments.

FFLs should read the proposed burden-reduction rules on recordkeeping and engaged-in-the-business definitions — the BSCA language Congress actually passed is what survives; the Biden-era expansion is what dies.

And yet. This rollback rests on Executive Order 14206 — a presidential action, not a statute. The next administration can rescind the order on day one and reintroduce every rule with fresh language designed to survive accumulated case law. Comments due August 4, 2026 on Docket ATF-2026-0335 build the administrative record the next hostile ATF has to answer. Submit substantive comments — not rage, facts. Name Mock. Cite Cargill. Cite Bruen.

Submit your public comment hereOpen regulations.gov to comment on the pistol-brace rescission →Deadline: August 4, 2026 · Docket ATF-2026-0335 · RIN 1140-AA98

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