(The Center Square) – Louisiana wildlife agents will not cite hunters or seize their firearm suppressors simply because they lack federal tax stamps or registration papers, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries announced Monday.
The announcement follows a federal policy change ending enforcement of certain suppressor approval and registration requirements. Other firearms and hunting rules remain in place.
Louisiana allows hunters to use legally possessed suppressors, but state law relies on a federal tax stamp as proof of lawful possession, according to the department.
“If your suppressor is legally possessed, and it is attached to a firearm that is legal for the season you are hunting, you have not violated state law,” the department said.
Congress reduced the federal taxes on making and transferring suppressors to $0. A federal judge in Texas ruled in August that certain National Firearms Act requirements could no longer be enforced against those covered by the ruling.
The Justice Department decided not to appeal and extended the nonenforcement policy nationwide.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced Friday that it would no longer require prior approval to make or transfer suppressors. It also will stop enforcing federal registration and tax-stamp requirements for those devices.
The policy also covers short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns and certain other firearms. It does not repeal the National Firearms Act or override state and local laws.
Buying a suppressor from a licensed dealer still requires the standard Form 4473 firearms transaction paperwork and any required background check. Dealers must continue keeping transaction records.
ATF will also continue accepting registration applications voluntarily, including those submitted to meet state requirements.
Louisiana wildlife officials said agents will still check hunting licenses, tags, season dates, hunting hours, bag limits and methods of take.
Suppressors may be used to hunt game birds, wild quadrupeds, outlaw quadrupeds, nutria and beaver, according to the department. The firearm must still be legal for the season.
“A suppressor does not make an illegal firearm legal,” the department said.
People prohibited from possessing firearms may not possess suppressors. Hunters convicted of a class four or greater hunting violation may not hunt with a suppressor for five years after the conviction.
Asked how agents would determine whether a suppressor is legally possessed without federal paperwork, department official Jeff Duguay referred the questions to Lt. Col. Clay Marques, who did not immediately respond.
Machine guns and destructive devices remain subject to the National Firearms Act’s full requirements and the $200 federal tax, according to ATF.
