{"id":79172,"date":"2017-09-13T16:15:50","date_gmt":"2017-09-13T20:15:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/blog\/?p=79172"},"modified":"2017-09-13T16:15:50","modified_gmt":"2023-08-21T07:16:41","slug":"hearing-protection-act-gets-heard-capitol-hill-clears-committee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunsamerica.com\/digest\/hearing-protection-act-gets-heard-capitol-hill-clears-committee\/","title":{"rendered":"Hearing Protection Act Gets Heard on Capitol Hill, Clears Committee"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Hearing<\/a>

Were HPA to become law, there would be no NFA application, registration or $200 tax levy for suppressors.<\/p><\/div>\n

The suppressor de-regulation bill known as the Hearing Protection Act (HPA) got heard this week on Capitol Hill by the House Natural Resources Subcommittee as part of a larger, pro-gun omnibus package known as the SHARE Act.\u00a0 Good news, it cleared the committee!!!<\/p>\n

At Tuesday\u2019s hearing, though, opponents of the measure wasted no time slamming it, arguing that removing suppressors from the National Firearms Act jeopardizes public safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cSilencers mask the sound of a gun, changing the sound into one not easily recognized as gunfire. As a result, ambush-style murders become easier, and bystanders may not know to alert first responders,\u201d said David Chipman, a policy adviser for the pro-gun control organization Americans for Responsible Solutions.<\/p>\n

Chipman, a former agent at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, was invited by the Democrats to testify.<\/p>\n

\u201cCongress must do more to make our communities safer, not put silencers in the hands of criminals, making it harder for people, including law enforcement, to identify the sound of gunfire, locate active shooters, and keep our communities safe,\u201d continued Chipman.<\/p>\n

Proponents of the HPA shot down these complaints, pointing out that criminals already have access to suppressors and that the current restrictions only keep responsible citizens from using them.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s easy to make a suppressor. If you want to make one now you can do it and a person who would not be dissuaded from committing a murder by capital punishment potentially is not going to worry about a National Firearms Act conviction for non-registration of a suppressor,\u201d said Stephen Halbrook, a Second Amendment attorney and guest of the Republicans.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact is we\u2019ve heard a parade of horribles of issues that would apply to criminals and we have criminal misuse of weapons now,\u201d he continued. \u201cThis bill would simply make it easier for law abiding people to protect their hearing.\u201d<\/p>\n

After all the mindless squabbling by the Democrats, the committee passed the SHARE Act on Wednesday. In addition to HPA, the SHARE Act also contains the following, per the NRA-ILA:<\/p>\n