The SHUSH Act (Silencers Help Us Save Hearing Act) removes federal restrictions on firearm silencers by treating them like regular gun accessories instead of heavily regulated items. Currently, silencers are classified as special weapons under federal law, requiring registration, a $200 tax stamp, and extensive paperwork through the National Firearms Act. This bill eliminates those requirements, allowing people to buy and own silencers with the same ease as other gun parts.

The bill also prevents states and cities from creating their own rules about silencers. Even if a state wanted to tax silencers, require registration, or track who owns them, those laws would be overridden by this federal law. Additionally, the bill removes silencers from the Consumer Product Safety Act, meaning they wouldn't be subject to those safety regulations either.

In practical terms, this means gun owners could purchase silencers without the current $200 fee, multi-month waiting periods, and federal registration process. The stated purpose is to protect hearing—silencers reduce noise from gunfire—but the effect is to make silencers much easier and cheaper to obtain. This represents a significant loosening of federal gun regulations that have been in place for decades.

SHUSH Act

Lee, Mike

Silencers Help Us Save Hearing Act or the SHUSH ActThis bill removes silencers from regulation&nbsp;under federal firearms laws.Specifically, it removes silencers from the list of firearms subject to regulation (i.e., registration and licensing requirements) under the National Firearms Act (NFA). Additionally, it excludes a muffler or silencer from the list of firearms subject to regulation (e.g., background check requirements) under the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA).Additionally, the bill does the following:<ul><li>preempts state or local laws that tax or regulate firearm silencers,</li><li>specifies that a person who lawfully acquires or possesses a silencer under provisions of the GCA meets the registration and licensing requirements of the NFA,</li><li>eliminates mandatory minimum prison terms for a crime of violence or drug trafficking offense in which a defendant uses or carries a firearm equipped with a silencer or muffler, and</li><li>permits active and retired law enforcement officers to carry a concealed silencer.</li></ul>Finally, the bill excludes firearm mufflers and silencers from regulation by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.&nbsp;(Current law generally excludes firearms from regulation by the commission.)