On Feb. 10 South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden (R) signed Senate Bill 2, which deregulated suppressors at the state level. It’s a major development, despite the fact the federal requirement to acquire a National Firearm Act (NFA) Stamp before taking possession of one of the hearing-safety devices remains mandatory.
More than a dozen states, including The Mount Rushmore State until Feb. 10, require residents to have an NFA Stamp to legally own a suppressor. With the cost of acquiring one reduced from $200 to $0 on Jan. 1, South Dakota’s move pre-emptively clears what would become an insurmountable hurdle should the Federal Government remove suppressors completely from the NFA, which would end stamp issuance.
The legal Catch-22 didn’t escape the notice of industry leaders. “…[W]e found that 16 states where suppressors are legal have some existing law requiring the Federal Stamp,” said Brandon Maddox, Silencer Central founder and CEO. “South Dakota is among them. We have been working with the NSSF in each of these states to get these existing laws and classifications overturned. This paves the way for unhindered ownership when we get silencers off the NFA…my hope is that we can use this state as an example for passing similar bills in the other 15 states.”
Gov. Rhoden wasted little time signing Senate Bill 2. It was unanimously approved by the state legislature only two weeks before.
“This is what proactive and commonsense leadership looks like. South Dakota is taking the steps to ensure that its citizens can lawfully obtain, possess and use a hearing protection device should we ever get to a point that they are removed from the National Firearms Act,” said Lawrence G. Keane, National Shooting Sports Foundation's senior vice president and general counsel. “Suppressors are hearing safety devices that make recreational shooting and hunting a safer and more enjoyable activity. We will continue to press to have these devices removed from the NFA so that they are more accessible to the public.”
“South Dakota is the most Second Amendment-friendly state in America, and this is yet another opportunity for us to pave the way and set an example for the rest of the nation,” said Gov. Rhoden in a press release. “By removing unnecessary state-level restrictions, we are standing up for freedom and protecting the constitutional right of law-abiding citizens.”
