If you've ever spent a Saturday morning at a shooting range, you know the drill. You shove those foam plugs into your ears, clamp a pair of heavy muffs over your head, and still, every shot feels like a physical punch to your skull. It’s loud. Ridiculously loud. In fact, a standard AR-15 shot registers at about 165 decibels. To put that in perspective, that’s louder than a jet engine taking off right next to your head. This is exactly where the Hearing Protection Act enters the conversation, and honestly, it’s one of the most misunderstood pieces of legislation in modern American history.
People hear "suppressor" and they immediately think of John Wick or some high-stakes spy thriller where a gun makes a tiny pew sound and nobody in the next room notices. That’s just Hollywood magic. In the real world, a suppressed firearm is still loud; it’s just "less likely to cause permanent eardrum melting" loud.
The Hearing Protection Act, or HPA, isn't some new, flash-in-the-pan idea. It’s been bouncing around Congress since roughly 2015, spearheaded by folks like Representative Jeff Duncan. The core goal is simple: take suppressors off the restrictive list of the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934 and treat them like regular firearms.
The NFA Headache: Why Suppressors are Taxed Like Machine Guns
To understand why the Hearing Protection Act exists, you have to look back at the Great Depression. In 1934, Congress was terrified of mobsters like Al Capone. They passed the NFA to crack down on "gangster weapons." For some reason that historians still argue about, suppressors—invented by Hiram Percy Maxim around 1909—were tossed onto that list alongside machine guns and short-barreled shotguns.
Right now, if you want to buy a "can" (that’s the slang for a suppressor), you don't just walk into a shop and leave with it. You have to pay a $200 tax stamp.
That $200 price tag hasn't changed since 1934. Back then, it was meant to be a massive financial barrier—equivalent to about $4,500 in today's money. Now, it’s just a massive bureaucratic annoyance. You submit your fingerprints to the ATF. You wait. And wait. Sometimes you wait for eight months; sometimes it’s over a year just to get permission to protect your hearing.
The Hearing Protection Act wants to scrap that wait. It wants to replace the NFA process with a standard NICS background check, the same one you do when buying a pistol or a rifle. Basically, if you’re legal to own the gun, the HPA argues you should be legal to own the muffler for that gun.
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Decibels and Reality: Is it Actually About Safety?
Health experts and audiologists often get caught in the middle of this political tug-of-war. Organizations like the American Academy of Audiology have pointed out that noise-induced hearing loss is permanent. Once those tiny hairs in your inner ear are fried, they don’t grow back.
Most suppressors reduce the noise of a gunshot by about 20 to 35 decibels. If a gun is firing at 160 dB, a suppressor brings it down to 130 dB or 140 dB. Is that "silent"? Not even close. For context, a jackhammer is about 110 dB. A suppressed gunshot is still louder than a chainsaw.
The argument from HPA supporters is that this reduction is the difference between an instant ear injury and a manageable sound level when combined with traditional earplugs. It’s about "hearing health," hence the name of the bill.
Opponents, however, aren't buying the health angle as the primary motivator. Groups like Everytown for Gun Safety argue that making suppressors easier to get would make it harder for bystanders or police to identify the location of a shooter during a crime. They point to the 2019 Virginia Beach shooting, where the perpetrator used a suppressed handgun. However, investigators in that case later noted that the sound of the shots was still clearly audible and recognized as gunfire by people in the building. It’s a messy, complicated debate where both sides feel they have the moral high ground.
The Legislative Rollercoaster
The Hearing Protection Act almost became law in 2017. It was rolled into a larger package called the SHARE Act. It had momentum. It had support. Then, the tragic shooting in Las Vegas happened. The political climate shifted overnight, and the bill was essentially mothballed.
Since then, it has been reintroduced multiple times—in 2019, 2021, 2023, and again recently. Each time, it follows a similar pattern:
- A Republican sponsor introduces it.
- It gains dozens of co-sponsors.
- It gets referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
- It sits there.
Why does it stall? Because it’s a "third rail" issue. Even though suppressors are legal in 42 states, the federal oversight is a significant hurdle. In places like the UK or New Zealand, suppressors are actually encouraged—and sometimes required—for hunters to prevent noise pollution. It’s a weird irony: in Europe, they are seen as a polite tool for neighbors; in the U.S., they are seen as a tool for assassins.
What Most People Get Wrong About Suppressor Crime
If you look at the data, the "silent killer" narrative doesn't really hold water with the actual statistics from the ATF. Suppressors are rarely used in crimes. Why? Because they make a gun significantly longer and harder to hide. If you’re trying to tuck a pistol into a waistband, adding a seven-inch metal tube to the end of it makes that nearly impossible.
According to a study by Western New Mexico University researcher Paul Clark, which analyzed ATF data over a ten-year period, suppressor-related crimes accounted for a microscopic fraction of all gun-related offenses. Most of the "crimes" involving suppressors are actually regulatory violations—like someone possessing one in a state where they are banned, or having an unregistered one—rather than using them in a robbery or homicide.
How the HPA Would Change the Market
If the Hearing Protection Act ever actually clears the finish line, the industry would explode. Right now, suppressors are expensive. You’re looking at $500 to $1,500 for the device, plus the $200 tax.
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If the NFA requirement is dropped:
- Prices would likely plummet due to mass production and competition.
- "Form 4" wait times would vanish.
- Hunting on private land would become much more neighbor-friendly.
There’s also the "Refund" clause that pops up in various versions of the bill. Some iterations of the HPA have suggested that anyone who paid the $200 tax stamp after a certain date (usually the date the bill was first introduced in that session) would get their money back. It’s a nice thought, but getting the IRS to issue millions in refunds is a logistical nightmare that rarely survives the final draft of any legislation.
The Practical Reality for Gun Owners Today
Since the Hearing Protection Act isn't law yet, what do you do? Honestly, if you want a suppressor, you shouldn't wait for Congress. They move at the speed of a tectonic plate.
The ATF has recently tried to modernize its "eForms" system. While the goal was a 90-day turnaround, it’s been a bit of a bumpy ride. Some people get lucky and get their stamp in 40 days; others are still waiting for months. It’s a total roll of the dice.
If you’re a hunter, using a suppressor is a game-changer. It helps with recoil. It helps with muzzle blast. It prevents you from spooking every animal within a three-mile radius. But you have to follow the current law: buy it through a Class 3 dealer, file your paperwork, and keep your tax stamp with you whenever you're using the "can."
Actionable Steps for Navigating the Current Landscape
The Hearing Protection Act is still a "maybe," but your hearing safety is a "now." If you’re interested in the policy or the gear, here is how you should actually handle it:
Don't wait for the law to change. If you want a suppressor, start the process now. The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago; the second best time is today. The same applies to NFA wait times.
Use the eForm system. If you’re buying, make sure your dealer is set up for the ATF’s eForm 4. It is significantly faster than the old-school paper mail-in forms.
Join a grassroots organization. If you actually want the HPA to pass, groups like the American Suppressor Association (ASA) are the ones doing the heavy lifting in D.C. They provide templates to write to your representatives, which, surprisingly, does actually matter when a bill is stuck in committee.
Check your local laws. Even if the federal HPA passes tomorrow, it wouldn't automatically make suppressors legal in states like California, New York, or Illinois. State bans trump federal deregulation in many of these scenarios.
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Understand the "Hearing Safe" threshold. Even with a suppressor, many calibers are still not "hearing safe" (usually defined as under 140 dB). Always check the decibel rating of your specific setup. You might still need thin ear protection even with a "can" attached.
The HPA isn't just about guns; it's about shifting a 90-year-old classification that many experts believe is outdated. Whether it’s a "safety tool" or a "public threat" depends largely on which side of the political aisle you sit on, but the physics of sound remains the same. Protecting your ears is a lifelong job, and the legislation surrounding it is likely to remain a hot-button issue for years to come.