Firearm Destruction Licensure Act of 2025
The Firearm Destruction Licensure Act of 2025 would require any person or business actively destroying firearms to obtain a license from the Attorney General (AG) and to comply with new destruction standards. It creates a new category of regulated actor called a “firearm destroyer” and defines a “covered method of firearm destruction” designed to ensure firearms are destroyed in a way that cannot be restored. The bill broadens federal controls around who can destroy firearms, imposes annual reporting requirements on licensed destroyers, and establishes a grant program under the Brady Act to fund destruction efforts. It also directs rulemaking to specify acceptable destruction methods and related recordkeeping, and it includes transitional provisions for dealers already licensed before the law’s effective date. The act would take effect 180 days after enactment.
Key Points
- 1Establishes a licensing regime for engaging in the business of destroying firearms, administered by the Attorney General through the ATF; defines “firearm destroyer.”
- 2Expands unlawful acts to require that destruction activities (not just dealing/manufacturing) be performed by licensed destroyers; requires certain destruction when firearms are received for destruction from government entities.
- 3Requires licensed firearm destroyers to submit annual destruction reports to the ATF, with public disclosure of those reports and aggregate statistics.
- 4Creates a grants program under the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to fund licensed dealers to destroy firearms using covered methods, and requires rulemaking to define acceptable destruction methods and related recordkeeping.
- 5Includes transitional and compliance provisions (e.g., dealers licensed before the effective date must certify compliance; license revocation for willful noncompliance) and sets the effective date at 180 days after enactment.