The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries says its agents will not cite hunters or seize suppressors simply because they do not have an ATF tax stamp or registration paperwork.
In an announcement Monday, LDWF said hunters may use legally possessed suppressors on firearms that are permitted for the season they are hunting. All other hunting requirements must still be followed.
The clarification follows an October 9 announcement from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives that it would stop enforcing certain federal approval, registration and tax stamp requirements for suppressors. Congress had previously reduced the federal making and transfer taxes on suppressors to $0.
Louisiana’s hunting law still references a federal tax stamp as evidence of lawful suppressor possession. LDWF says its agents will not issue citations or seize suppressors solely because that documentation is missing.
Agents will continue checking hunting licenses, tags, season dates, hunting hours, bag limits and permitted hunting methods. The department emphasized that attaching a suppressor does not make a firearm legal for a season in which that firearm is prohibited.
LDWF also reminded hunters that people prohibited from possessing firearms cannot possess suppressors. Anyone convicted of a class four or greater hunting violation remains barred from hunting with a suppressor for five years after the conviction.
ATF says dealer requirements, including applicable background checks and transaction records, remain in place. Its federal enforcement policy does not override state or local laws.
