A group of Republicans in Congress has introduced a measure that takes aim at the divisive Biden-era Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. 

Dubbed the Second Amendment Restoration Act, a bill sponsored by U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Texas, was introduced on Nov. 12. While the text of the proposal isn't available yet, Hunt's office stresses it will repeal federal incentives for states to implement so-called "Red Flag" gun seizure laws, and dial back an expansion of the federal background check system that has led to delays and extended waiting periods for legal firearm purchasers. 

"The Second Amendment Restoration Act reverses the dangerous provisions of the so-called Safer Communities Act, which pushed red flag laws on Texans and funded their expansion nationwide," said Hunt in a statement. "The Constitution is crystal clear: our right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. Every lawmaker who claims to stand for freedom should support this bill without hesitation. Protecting the right of Americans to defend themselves and their families is not just policy, it’s principle."

Rushed into law in June 2022, S.2938, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, was 80 pages of anti-gun policy wed to a social spending measure. 

Passed with a modicum of GOP support, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimated the law would affect some $9.5 billion in mandated outlays in 2022 alone. Chief among these was $750 million earmarked annually to incentivize states to implement red flag seizure laws. Such laws are seen by many as constitutionally suspect because of their scant due process protections. 

The BSCA also instituted an enhanced background check process, which includes reviewing juvenile mental health records for adults less than 21 years of age seeking to purchase or transfer a firearm. The law allows the process to now take as many as 13 business days before a "delay" at a firearms dealer could default to "proceed." 

Hunter's bill has the support of Gun Owners of America, the National Association for Gun Rights, and the National Rifle Association, among other pro-2A groups. 

Filed as H.R.6035, the bill has nine co-sponsors at introduction, all Republicans, and has been double-referred to the House Judiciary Committee as well as the Education and Workforce Committee.

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