VA Announces End To Policy that Strips the Second Amendment Rights of Veterans

Today, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that the VA will no longer report veterans to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) solely because they have been assigned a fiduciary to assist them with their finances. Further, the VA is working with the FBI to remove all the names of veterans who have been unjustly reported to NICS under this guise.

This action reverses a longstanding and controversial VA policy that strips the Second Amendment rights of our veterans without any due process.

The National Rifle Association applauds the Department of Veterans Affairs and Secretary Doug Collins, under the direction of President Donald Trump, for correcting this injustice by restoring due process protections and beginning to correct the improper reporting of veterans to the NICS database.

John Commerford, Executive Director of NRA-ILA, stated: "No veteran who bravely served our nation should ever lose their fundamental Second Amendment rights for simply asking for help—today's action is a major step toward fairness and honors the sacrifices of those who defended our freedoms."

Since 2024, NRA-ILA has secured a provision in the appropriations process that defunded the VA’s ability to report veterans  to NICS without a judicial authority deeming that a veteran is a danger to himself, herself, or others.

While it is hard to overstate the importance of this policy change to our nation’s veterans, Congress must pass legislation to codify this position so that future anti-gun administrations cannot backslide on this crucial protection. NRA-ILA is also working with Chairman Mike Bost (R-IL-12), Chairman Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) to accomplish just that through the Veterans 2^nd Amendment Protection Act (H.R. 1041/S. 478). Most recently, this legislation passed out of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs with an important amendment that would retroactively restore the rights of veterans who had been caught up in the VA’s gun grab scheme.

This reform, advanced under strong leadership and longstanding NRA advocacy with key lawmakers, ensures veterans are treated as full citizens and not discouraged from seeking earned support—we will keep pushing to make these protections permanent.