DOJ Drops Defense of Biden ATF Dealer Registry Grab

Acting AG Todd Blanche's DOJ filed a motion to dismiss Texas v. ATF, abandoning the federal government's defense of the ATF's 'Engaged in the Business' rule — one of the most aggressive attempts to expand federal firearms licensing in modern history.

The Biden-era rule stretched the definition of who qualifies as a firearms dealer required to obtain a Federal Firearms License. Critics — and federal courts — recognized it for what it was: a backdoor attempt to register gun sellers and chill private transfers between law-abiding Americans.

Texas led the legal charge against this regulatory power grab. The DOJ just walked away from the fight entirely. That's not a settlement. That's a surrender.

The ATF spent years under Biden weaponizing rulemaking to accomplish what Congress refused to authorize. The 'Engaged in the Business' expansion was a direct attack on private sale rights that gun owners have exercised for generations — no license required, no government permission slip needed.

Be clear about what this rule actually targeted: everyday Americans selling firearms from their personal collections. Not traffickers. Not criminals. Law-abiding citizens exercising their Second Amendment rights.

The DOJ's move signals that the Trump administration has zero interest in defending rules that stretch ATF authority beyond what Congress ever intended. That's exactly the posture gun owners elected this administration to take.

This victory belongs to Texas, to the plaintiffs who refused to back down, and to every gun owner who fought this rule from day one. The ATF's mission creep just hit a hard stop.

Watch this space — with the DOJ out of the fight, Texas v. ATF could produce a precedent that blocks future administrations from attempting the same licensing overreach. Know your rights, support the organizations fighting these battles in court, and never let a bureaucratic rule go unchallenged.