The Trump administration is set to revive a federal process for restoring gun rights to people with criminal records that has been inactive for three decades.
Top Takeaways
- The Trump Administration plans to transfer authority for restoring gun rights from the ATF to the Justice Department through a new interim final rule.
- The ATF has been unable to process gun rights restoration requests since the early 1990s due to Congressional restrictions.
- The initiative is part of President Trump’s executive branch gun policy review and will focus on non-violent offenders who demonstrate law-abiding behavior.
- The rule will take effect immediately with a 90-day public comment period, bypassing typical notice-and-comment procedures.
Dormant Rights Restoration Process Revived
The Department of Justice has announced plans to establish a new process for restoring firearm rights to certain individuals with criminal convictions. This move revives a federal pathway that has been effectively blocked since the early 1990s when Congress cut funding for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to process such applications. The proposed interim final rule (IFR) will transfer authority from the ATF to Attorney General Pam Bondi, creating a framework to evaluate applicants based on specific criteria rather than blanket prohibitions.
Federal law currently prohibits individuals with felony convictions or domestic violence misdemeanor convictions from possessing firearms. However, federal statute (18 U.S.C. 925(c)) has long included provisions allowing for rights restoration when specific conditions are met. Attorney General Bondi will not immediately delegate this authority to another agency but will instead develop recommendations to Congress for appropriate funding strategies to implement the program effectively.
Finally, a pro-gun action from Bondi—taking power back from the ATF to restore gun rights.
But this isn’t full compliance with Trump’s EO. The DOJ is still litigating anti-2A cases, Bondi’s Report is overdue, and ATF funding remains at $4.4M/day.
A good start, but we need more. pic.twitter.com/wqA2MdOauY
— National Association for Gun Rights (@NatlGunRights) March 19, 2025
Addressing Long-Standing Funding Obstacles
The restoration process has been in limbo for over 30 years due to Congressional appropriations limitations. As Attorney General Bondi explained in the proposed rule: “ATF, which currently has regulatory authority to act on applications made under 18 U.S.C. 925(c), has been forbidden from utilizing any of its appropriated funds for staffing to process requests by individuals for over 30 years.” This funding prohibition has effectively denied eligible individuals a legal pathway to petition for the restoration of their Second Amendment rights, even when they have demonstrated rehabilitation.
“Revising 28 CFR 0.130 and removing 27 CFR 478.144 further provides the Department a clean slate on which to build a new approach to implementing 18 U.S.C. 925(c) without the baggage of no-longer-necessary procedures—e.g., a requirement to file an application ‘in triplicate,’ 27 CFR 478.144(b),” Bondi elaborated.
The Trump administration’s initiative responds to concerns from gun-rights advocates who have argued that the lifetime ban on firearm ownership for all felonies, regardless of their nature or age, is excessively punitive. The restoration process would consider factors such as the nature and severity of the original offense, the time elapsed since conviction, and evidence of rehabilitation and law-abiding behavior. This approach aims to distinguish between violent offenders who pose a public safety risk and those with non-violent convictions who have demonstrated rehabilitation.
Controversy and Implementation Timeline
The plan has already generated controversy within the administration. According to reporting, pardon attorney Elizabeth G. Oyer was recently fired after refusing to recommend actor Mel Gibson for gun rights restoration. The interim final rule is set to take effect immediately upon publication, with a 90-day public comment period to follow. The Justice Department has determined that it is not required to follow the standard notice-and-comment rulemaking procedures for this particular rule. The administration justifies this expedited approach by citing the long-standing inability to implement a congressionally established statutory right and the need to address what it views as an unnecessary barrier to Second Amendment rights for those who no longer pose a threat to public safety.
The criteria for restoring gun rights will be developed in the coming months as the DOJ examines how best to evaluate past criminal activity against evidence of current law-abiding behavior. The process represents a significant shift in federal gun policy, reflecting the administration’s broader efforts to review and modify gun regulations while balancing public safety concerns with constitutional rights considerations.
