On October 18th, the Firearms Research Center, in conjunction with the Wyoming Law Review, hosted a symposium on the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934. The one-day event featured panels that examined many aspects of this major federal law.
The NFA was enacted in 1934 and was the first major federal restriction on certain types of firearms and accoutrements. The law required registration of machine guns, silencers (suppressors), and short-barreled rifles and shotguns. It also imposed a $200 tax stamp.
Many of these sessions were recorded. In this forum, I discuss interesting aspects of each. Several of these sessions are available for self-study CLE credit.
The Second Amendment, the NFA, and Historical Firearms
Clayton Cramer, Professor of History, College of Western Idaho
Ted Noel, Retired, Board Certified Anesthesiologist
Tom Bell, Chapman University, Fowler School of Law
Chris Land, General Counsel for U.S. Senator Cynthia M. Lummis
30 minutes of CLE
The fourth video in our National Firearms Act Series was a panel that covered a range of different interpretations on the Second Amendment and how it is impacted by the NFA. The first two speakers discussed the NFA in the context of the original motivations for its adoption and expansion since its enactment. Professor Bell provides a look at an anti-militia theory for the basis of the Second Amendment. Finally, Land discusses a recent bill that recommends a modification to current law that would waive the tax stamp for non-government museums and permit them to collect unregistered NFA items and post 1986 machine guns.
As a museum professional who is faced regularly with issues of historic preservation in museums, the final speaker was of particular interest to me. It’s lesser known that non-government museums are bound by gun laws at local, state, and federal levels. As such, there are many historically significant artifacts that cannot be acquired. While government museums can collect these items, there are few locations that have the capacity and/or the desire to collect them. If a government museum cannot take them, then they are subject to confiscation