The image of a uniformed postal worker carrying a package up a front stoop in the Bronx, possibly delivering a handgun, has an almost disorienting quality. Under a rule that the Trump administration is actively working to make real, not in some dystopian thought experiment. For the first time in almost a century, regular Americans may be able to mail pistols and revolvers through the USPS if the proposal currently in the Federal Register is approved. When this was last permitted, Prohibition was in full force and Calvin Coolidge was president.
The 1927 law that forbade the mailing of concealable weapons was not a historical coincidence. Congress passed it specifically to prevent handguns from being mailed during a time of widespread organized crime. It was a calculated reaction to a violent era. That law was regarded as a settled issue of federal postal policy and remained largely unchallenged for almost a century. The Trump administration’s Department of Justice then declared it unconstitutional in a court ruling in January of this year. The DOJ stated quite bluntly that the Second Amendment “precludes it from refusing to ship constitutionally protected firearms to and from law-abiding citizens” as long as Congress runs a parcel service.”It’s a sweeping reading of gun rights — and one that’s landed like a grenade in an already combustible policy environment.”The Trump administration is giving criminals, abusers, and straw buyers easy access to lethal weapons by transforming the USPS into a conduit for the trafficking of firearms.
In April, the USPS published a proposed rule that would allow mail delivery to handguns under certain circumstances, following the DOJ’s lead. The regulations are rather lax within the state; a seller may ship straight to a buyer. The restrictions become much more stringent across state lines: a person could only mail a gun to themselves, take care of another person, and have to open it in person when they got there. The administration claims that the goal is to assist those who travel across state lines for legitimate reasons, such as target shooting, hunting, or self-defense, and who currently have to deal with a confusing patchwork of state laws that occasionally make it nearly impossible to transport firearms.
For a small subset of gun owners, that argument might actually have some validity. There are actual situations where a person who is lawfully in possession of a firearm in one state finds themselves in a legal limbo as soon as they cross a border. The DOJ presents this as a workable solution for law-abiding citizens stuck in bureaucratic limbo rather than as a drastic increase in gun access. Depending on your position before the discussion even begins, you may or may not find that convincing.
| Law in Question | Federal statute passed by Congress in 1927 banning USPS from mailing concealable firearms |
| Era of Origin | Prohibition era — passed to curb crime linked to easily concealable weapons |
| Proposing Authority | U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) under the Trump Administration |
| DOJ Position | Declared the 1927 law unconstitutional; says it violates the Second Amendment |
| USPS Action | Published proposed rule (April 2026) that would allow individuals to mail handguns |
| Current USPS Policy | Allows mailing of long-barreled rifles and shotguns (unloaded, securely packaged) — not handguns |
| Cross-State Rules (Proposed) | Guns mailed across state lines only to oneself, in care of another person, opened personally |
| Opposition | Attorneys general from approximately 24 Democratic-led states |
| Key Critics | Nevada AG Aaron Ford; Everytown for Gun Safety president John Feinblatt |
| Key Supporters | NRA lobbying arm executive director John Commerford |
| Private Carriers | UPS and FedEx restrict gun shipments to federally licensed dealers only |
| Public Comment Deadline | Monday, May 2026 (comments now under review by USPS) |
The pushback has been well-planned and quick. The Postal Service received a letter from the attorneys general of about two dozen states, all of which are Democrats, requesting that the proposed rule be withdrawn before the deadline for public comment. AG Aaron Ford of Nevada was one of the most direct in his reply. Naturally, the deadliest mass shooting in contemporary American history occurred in Nevada in 2017 when a gunman opened fire from the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas, killing sixty people. The state enacted legislation mandating background checks on private gun sales as a result. According to Ford, relaxing federal postal regulations would subtly undo precisely that kind of state-level work, allowing firearms to pass through the mail system without triggering any of the checks Nevada and similar states have spent years establishing.
Additionally, the attorneys general bring up a difficult-to-disregard practical enforcement issue. Private carriers such as UPS and FedEx currently limit gun shipments to importers, manufacturers, and licensed dealers who possess federal firearms licenses. On the basis of that requirement, they have constructed compliance structures. With millions of packages handled every day, the postal service would have to start from scratch to create something similar. The letter contends that in order to account for firearms passing through USPS, law enforcement agencies would need to develop completely new tracking systems, a burden that would fall on state budgets. Even putting aside the policy debate, there is a feeling that the logistical challenge alone could be very difficult.
For their part, gun advocacy organizations believe that this is a long-overdue correction. The proposed modification, according to John Commerford of the NRA’s lobbying division, is a significant win for law-abiding gun owners. From that perspective, the framing is consistent: current regulations penalize those who abide by them while doing little to deter those who do not. In American gun debates, this argument is well-known and not wholly illogical. As usual, the question is what happens to those who are on the periphery and who are not fully covered by the regulations.
As this develops, it’s difficult to ignore the fact that the proposal comes at a time when the Trump administration has been methodically reviewing all gun laws. The reinstatement of the so-called “gun show loophole” and other relaxations of firearms regulations indicate that this is a part of a larger philosophical trend rather than a singular policy change. It remains to be seen if the handgun mail rule can withstand legal challenges. The Democratic attorneys general have referred to it as “unlawful,” and they have been prepared to file a lawsuit on much less controversial grounds. It’s highly likely that courts will have an opinion on this.
It’s still unclear if the USPS will approve the rule exactly as written, make significant changes after considering public feedback, or simply let it stall. The comments that were submitted prior to the May deadline are still being processed, according to the postal service. The battle over a century-old law, a postal service in the midst of a privatization debate, and the constantly changing Second Amendment jurisprudence all seem certain to be far from over. A rule that has been in place for a century is being contested. The weight of legal tradition may not have as much of an impact on whether it bends or holds as the current political climate.
