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A federal judge in Texas temporarily blocked a Biden administration rule that expanded background checks on gun purchases. The new rule was designed to close the gun show loophole by requiring non-licensed gun sellers to perform background checks on buyers.
Under the new rule, private sellers selling weapons at gun shows and over the Internet are subject to the same requirements as gun sellers with a Federal Firearms License. The Biden administration claimed the new rule would apply to around 23,000 unlicensed dealers plus tens of thousands of gun sales annually.
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk said that the new rule contradicted the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which broadened the category of gun sellers who are required to obtain a federal license to sell weapons.
However, the injunction only applies in Texas and to members of the gun rights groups involved in the lawsuit. Judge Kacsmaryk ruled that Louisiana, Mississippi, and Utah failed to establish standing in the lawsuit and wrote that those states "will not be afforded relief at this stage of litigation."
The temporary injunction will expire on June 2.