The United States Postal Service announced last month that it is reviewing a proposed rule to permit the mailing of pistols and revolvers, reversing a nearly 100-year-old federal restriction on shipping concealable firearms. USPS officials said public comments on the proposal closed Monday, and the agency is evaluating submissions before finalizing the regulation. The rule change follows a January directive from the Department of Justice, which reviewed the original 1927 law and concluded that “the Second Amendment precludes it from refusing to ship constitutionally protected firearms to and from law-abiding citizens, even if they are not licensed manufacturers or dealers.”
Under the 1927 law passed by Congress, the postal service was prohibited from mailing concealable firearms unless they came from licensed dealers, an effort at the time to curb crime. The proposed USPS rule would allow anyone to mail handguns as long as they are unloaded and securely packaged, mirroring existing protections for long-barreled rifles and shotguns. The Department of Justice said the change is necessary because a patchwork of state firearm laws makes it difficult for lawful owners to transport guns across state lines for hunting, target shooting or self-defense. In many instances, federal attorneys argued, mailing a firearm has become the “only viable method of transportation.”
The proposed regulations draw a distinction between in-state and cross-state shipments. Within state lines, an individual could sell and mail a handgun directly to another person. For cross-state shipping, the rules are stricter: a person could only mail a firearm to themselves in the care of another individual and would be required to open the package personally. The provision is intended to assist travelers moving firearms to another state for recreational use.
Opposition to the rule emerged quickly from state attorneys general. Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford, along with counterparts in roughly two dozen other states, sent a letter to the USPS on Monday urging it to withdraw the proposal. Ford, a Democrat currently running for governor, said the rule would undo efforts by states like Nevada to reduce gun violence. He pointed to Nevada’s requirement for state-administered background checks on most private gun sales and transfers, a policy enacted after the Oct. 1, 2017, Las Vegas mass shooting that left 60 people dead.
“Our state has suffered enough, and to suggest we make it easier for criminals and abusers to access firearms is a slap in the face to gun violence survivors and law enforcement,” Ford said.
The coalition of attorneys general argued that the proposed rule would bypass state-regulated requirements such as firearms safety courses, background searches and mental health history checks. They warned that the change would make it easier for individuals prohibited from possessing guns, including those convicted of felonies or domestic violence offenses, to acquire firearms. The state officials also said the rule would complicate efforts to solve gun crimes and force law enforcement agencies to develop new tracking structures, placing an added financial burden on state budgets. They contended that the executive branch does not have the authority to override a law passed by Congress or to supersede existing state gun regulations.
Firearm industry groups and gun safety advocates offered contrasting reactions to the development. John Commerford, executive director of the lobbying arm of the National Rifle Association, called the proposal a key victory for gun owners. “Thanks to President Trump and his administration, USPS will finally allow these firearms to be shipped under the same commonsense safety conditions as rifles and shotguns,” Commerford said in a Wednesday statement.
Everytown for Gun Safety, however, expressed alarm over the potential impact on public safety. John Feinblatt, the organization’s president, warned that the rule change would turn the postal service into a “gun trafficking pipeline” for illegal weapons. The policy “strips law enforcement of the tools they need to prevent and investigate gun crime,” Feinblatt said.
Private shipping carriers currently maintain stricter policies on firearm transport. Both UPS and FedEx limit gun shipments to customers holding federal firearms licenses, such as licensed dealers, manufacturers, importers and collectors. FedEx requires licensed shippers to coordinate with an account executive for approval before transporting firearms. The USPS proposal would place the federal postal service outside those private-sector restrictions for handgun shipments, pending final review of public comments.