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Texas Bill Would Put Local “Buybacks” Out of Business, Ending an Anti-gun Charade

Monday, June 2, 2025

Texas Bill Would Put Local “Buybacks” Out of Business, Ending an Anti-gun Charade

As Texas House Bill 3053 heads to Governor Abbott’s desk, it is serving as a broader reminder to all states of the gun “buybacks” scam, only this time with a legislative solution to this anti-gun mainstay. Time and again, decades of research and examples of diversion to criminals city by city continue to prove these initiatives to be futile, if not counterproductive. Yet anti-gun propagandists, and well-meaning dupes who get roped into supporting them, continue to find “buybacks” irresistible in most states. Texas took seriously a new approach to what is now an old problem by running legislation to ensure that municipalities and counties cannot adopt or enforce any ordinance or measure that facilitates a gun buyback program, i.e., that taxpayer resources are not expended on gun control cheerleading events that lack any real public safety value.

All government-sponsored gun “buybacks” in Anytown, U.S.A., have the same inherent flaws. First, nearly all of these programs are implemented at a county or city level using significant taxpayer monies.  These programs often offer cash, gift cards, or other incentives such as sporting event tickets for firearms under the guise of public safety.  On their face alone, these programs appear illogical as a method to reduce gun violence. The “buyback” itself is largely anonymous by design, often under a “no questions asked” format. While that may, in theory, give a criminal opportunity to easily rid himself of an illegal firearm with a reduced risk of prosecution, most of the firearms turned in are old and inoperable, not the sorts or firearms usable in crimes.

Yet neither option is poised to enhance public safety. In the first, the trigger puller remains at large, only without potentially incriminating evidence and slightly enriched on the taxpayers’ dime. In the second, the buyback organizers serve as glorified garbage collectors.

Additionally, in most cases, the offered prices are less than the potential sale price of a firearm in good operating condition. In other reported cases, people were receiving large sums of money for items that were not even firearms; recall that New York was forced to change their buyback rules after a participant exploited the system by using a 3D printer to make parts in bulk that he exchanged for over $21,000 in gift cards.

Again, the most rigorous studies over the course of decades now show no empirical evidence to support that these initiatives have any anti-crime benefit even after utilizing millions of dollars. In Harris County, Texas, the county alone provided over $1 million dollars in taxpayer money specifically for gun “buyback” programs. These programs continue to raise questions about the relative effectiveness of each intervention when these notable sums and resources could and should have been redirected in a more meaningful way for citizen safety.

The gun owning community finds these programs cringeworthy; as well, the term “buyback” falsely suggests that the government had ownership of these firearms in the first place. NRA, in working to protect Second Amendment rights in all 50 states and their municipalities, knows all too well the necessity of guardrails to check the misuse of local government authority, and this is what Texas is ultimately seeking to do.

Local efforts like gun “buybacks” can have an enduring effect on establishing an official anti-gun orthodoxy, while serving as a socially engineered distraction to the honest conversations needed on real safety measures. States should be focusing on efforts that provide solutions, not merely attention, and what happens next in Texas is worth watching for all states.

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New Jersey Attorney General Platkin: Making Up Gun Control Laws as He Goes Along

News  

Monday, August 4, 2025

New Jersey Attorney General Platkin: Making Up Gun Control Laws as He Goes Along

The most fundamental requirement for a legitimate legal regime is that a person must be able to know what the law requires before being held accountable to it. 

Smith & Wesson’s Clinton-Era Agreement Resurrected in Canadian Lawsuit

News  

Monday, August 4, 2025

Smith & Wesson’s Clinton-Era Agreement Resurrected in Canadian Lawsuit

In 2000, as part of a settlement of dozens of product liability/negligence lawsuits brought by local governments and the threat of litigation by the federal government, the then-British-owned gunmaker Smith & Wesson signed a deal brokered by ...

NRA, Other Leading Second Amendment Groups File Lawsuit Challenging the Constitutionality of the National Firearms Act

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Friday, August 1, 2025

NRA, Other Leading Second Amendment Groups File Lawsuit Challenging the Constitutionality of the National Firearms Act

Today, the National Rifle Association (NRA), American Suppressor Association (ASA), Second Amendment Foundation (SAF), Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC), Prime Protection STL Tactical Boutique, and two members of the organizations filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality ...

Armed Citizen Helps Stop Terrifying Mass Stabbing in Michigan

News  

Monday, August 4, 2025

Armed Citizen Helps Stop Terrifying Mass Stabbing in Michigan

Recent headlines continue to serve as important reminders that when seconds count, a lawfully armed citizen is often there in the interval before law enforcement can be.

North Carolina: Pro-Gun Bills Advance in Veto Override Session

Tuesday, July 29, 2025

North Carolina: Pro-Gun Bills Advance in Veto Override Session

During a veto override session on Tuesday, July 29th, both chambers passed House Bill 193 (H193) and defeated Governor Josh Stein's veto.

Australia Firearm Data Breach Shows Dangers of Gun Licensing and Registration

News  

Monday, August 4, 2025

Australia Firearm Data Breach Shows Dangers of Gun Licensing and Registration

Firearm data breaches are becoming the norm in Australasia.

UK to Ban Lead Ammo

News  

Monday, August 4, 2025

UK to Ban Lead Ammo

It goes without saying that banning guns is not the only way to effectively disarm civilians.  

Legislation Introduced to Prevent States from Enforcing Firearm Rosters

News  

Thursday, July 31, 2025

Legislation Introduced to Prevent States from Enforcing Firearm Rosters

On July 23, Representatives Darrell Issa (R-CA-48) and Elise Stefanik (R-NY-21) introduced the Modern Firearm Safety Act (H.R. 4676). This legislation would reject the effort by anti-gun radicals to utilize unconstitutional “handgun rosters.” These rosters prevent law-abiding ...

Report: Newsom Rejected Gifted Handgun Because California Law is Too Complicated

News  

Monday, July 28, 2025

Report: Newsom Rejected Gifted Handgun Because California Law is Too Complicated

In a video interview with Tennessee-based podcaster Shawn Ryan published earlier this month, anti-gun California Governor Gavin Newsom appeared to accept a gift of a Sig P365 XMACRO semi-automatic handgun from the former U.S. Navy ...

Florida: Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday Signed by Governor

Monday, July 7, 2025

Florida: Second Amendment Sales Tax Holiday Signed by Governor

Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed the Florida Budget for Fiscal Year 2025–2026, which includes a Second Amendment sales tax holiday from September 8 through December 31, 2025. The NRA is thankful for Governor DeSantis’ strong ...

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Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.