As a lifelong sportsman, I am committed to protecting the right to bear arms for law-abiding individuals in Montana and across our country. I strongly oppose any efforts from Washington to restrict our Second Amendment rights and our way of life in Montana, and I will work to ensure that Congress protects the Constitutional rights of the thousands of Montanans who safely and lawfully possess or use a firearm.
I believe private-sale background checks, banning modern sporting rifles, semi-automatic pistols, semi-automatic shotguns, high capacity magazines, and other attachments, among other proposals, would not change the underlying problems behind violent crimes. I believe we need to strictly enforce current laws forbidding potentially dangerous persons from possessing a firearm, but I will continue to stand firmly against any proposal that undermines Montanans’ Second Amendment rights.
Daines Leads Effort to Protect Montana Gun Owners from Burdensome Gun Tax
Senator Steve Daines helped introduce the “Repealing Illegal Freedom and Liberty Excises (RIFLE) Act,” legislation that would remove a burdensome tax imposed on firearms regulated under the National Firearms Act. “It is unconstitutional for this Administration to punish law-abiding Montanans with burdensome regulations that make it impossible for them to exercise their Second Amendment rights. I strongly oppose this unnecessary tax from President Biden and stand with Montanans’ right to lawfully possess firearms,” said Daines. Text of the legislation may be found here. Background: The 1934 National Firearms Act (NFA) regulates short-barreled shotguns and rifles, fully automatic firearms, suppressors, and a catchall
Daines Stands Up for Law-Abiding Montana Gun Owners
Joins Republican Colleagues in Filing Brief with Supreme Court Opposing a Ban on Bump Stocks U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines joined a group of his Republican colleagues and multiple legal experts in filing an amici curiae brief in the U.S. Supreme Court case Garland v. Cargill. The brief asserts the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) ban on bump stocks under the National Firearms Act is not only an egregious violation of Montanans’ right to bear arms but also represents a dangerous new frontier of federal bureaucrats interpreting federal law in expansive new ways Congress clearly did not intend, including by
Daines Votes to Protect Veterans’ Second Amendment Rights
Amendment would prevent unelected bureaucrats from stripping veterans of their right to keep and bear arms U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines voted today to prevent veterans from losing their Second Amendment right to purchase or own firearms when they receive help managing their Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits. The amendment is based on the “Veterans Second Amendment Protection Act.” “We must protect the Second Amendment rights of our veterans. As we approach Veterans Day and remember those who bravely sacrificed so much so that we can be free, the least we can do is protect them from being stripped of this constitutional right. Unelected
Daines Honors Montanan of the Month for September: Chad Bauer of Missoula County
Mr. Bauer Teaches Hunter Education Courses in Montana U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines recognized Chad Bauer of Missoula County for his commitment to stewarding safe and ethical practices among the next generation of Montana sportsmen and women. Last month, the Biden administration moved to defund school hunting and shooting programs, like the courses Mr. Bauer teaches. Following pressure from Daines, this week the Administration announced they will not be moving forward with their plan to shut down these classes. Through his “Montanan of the Month” initiative, each month Daines highlights a Montanan by submitting a statement of recognition in the recipient’s honor into the Congressional Record, the document that reflects
Daines Blasts Biden Administration for Latest Attack on Montanans’ Second Amendment Rights
Biden Administration’s proposed rule would skirt Congress, implement unlawful background checks U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland opposing the Biden Administration’s proposed rule that any Montanan who sells a firearm for a profit to any person, including family, could be classified as a firearm ‘dealer’ and be forced to get a federal license, conduct a background check, and complete gun registration paperwork by the federal government. This proposed rule is an attempt to go around Congressional authority and rewrite a settled law in an attempt to implement backdoor universal background checks. “President Biden’s new proposed rule would create a loophole
Daines Introduces Bill to Prevent Biden Administration from Implementing Gun-Grabbing Agenda
Bill would stop administration from using a public health emergency as a loophole to impose gun control measures U.S. SENATE – U.S.Senator Steve Daines joined a group of his Republican colleagues to introduce the “Protecting the Right to Keep and Bear Arms Act” to prevent President Biden and the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) from declaring a public health emergency to impose gun control. Earlier this month, the Governor of New Mexico instituted a public health emergency for the purposes of suspending the 2nd Amendment-protected carrying of firearms. This comes after years of activist groups encouraging the Biden administration, specifically HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, to take the same path
Daines Calls Out Biden for Attacking Montana School Hunting, Archery Programs
U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines joined a group of his Republican Senate colleagues in a letter to President Biden urging the administration to withdraw its outrageous plan to block funding for Montana elementary and secondary school hunting and archery programs. The letter condemns the Biden administration’s purposeful misinterpretation of last year’s gun control bill to justify blocking funding for Montana schools with these outdoor recreation programs. More than 500,000 students participate and are certified through hunter education courses each year in the U.S. These important programs help students learn how to handle firearms safely — in turn, decreasing firearm-related injuries and accidents. In the letter, the senators
Daines Fights for Montanans’ Second Amendment Rights
Joins Colleagues in Demanding Answers for Shipping Policies Targeting Firearms and Ammunition U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines joined his colleagues in sending letters to major shipping companies regarding their policies surrounding firearms and ammunition. Over the past year, several large freight and shipping companies have implemented policies that discriminate against the firearm and ammunition industries, ranging from prohibiting shipments containing certain firearm parts to total bans on firearms and ammunition. “[DHL/XPO Logistics/Saia’s] policy is an affront to the Second Amendment and discriminates against the millions of law-abiding citizens, including many of our constituents, who utilize and value their constitutional right to keep and bear arms,” the Senators wrote. “Your policy
Daines, Colleagues Stand With Sportsmen, Reintroduce Bill to Stop the Ban of Traditional Ammo & Tackle
U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines led a group of 23 of his colleagues to introduce a bill to prohibit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from banning the use of traditional lead ammunition or tackle on public lands unless such action is supported by the best available science and state wildlife and fish agencies. “Sportsmen are the original conservationists and play an important role in wildlife management—the last thing we should do is limit their access to public lands by implementing a blanket-ban on traditional ammo and tackle, reduce revenue for important state wildlife