What presidents did on guns: laws signed and actions taken.
Congress writes the laws. Presidents sign them, and some act on their own through agencies and orders.
Every entry links to the official record.
Signed the National Firearms Act
Tax and federal registration for machine guns, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and silencers.
Signed the Gun Control Act of 1968
Created the federal firearms license system and the list of prohibited persons.
Signed the Firearm Owners Protection Act
Added safe passage for travelers and closed the civilian machine gun registry to new guns.
Halted imports of many semiautomatic rifles
Imports were suspended in March and made permanent in July under the Gun Control Act sporting purposes test.
Signed the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act
Background checks on dealer sales, with an interim waiting period until the instant check system began in 1998.
Signed the 1994 crime bill
Included the Federal Assault Weapons Ban, which expired in September 2004.
Expanded the import ban to modified semiautomatic rifles
Rifles altered to meet the 1994 law were blocked from import under the sporting purposes test.
Signed the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act
Shields lawful makers and dealers from lawsuits over criminal misuse of their products.
Announced executive actions on gun sales
Guidance on who is “in the business” of selling firearms and must be licensed and run background checks, plus more ATF and background check resources.
Signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act
Expanded checks for buyers under 21 and funded state crisis intervention programs.
Executive Order 14092
Directed agencies to move toward background checks on more sales without new legislation.
Executive Order 14206, Protecting Second Amendment Rights
Directed the Attorney General to review federal gun actions from 2021 to 2025 for Second Amendment infringements.
Signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act
Set the $200 NFA tax to $0 for suppressors, short-barreled rifles and shotguns, and AOWs, starting January 1, 2026.
See how Congress voted on these laws on How Congress Voted.
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