Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford has thrown the state’s weight behind a multistate fight to stop a U.S. Postal Service proposal that would let certain handguns be mailed. Ford argues the move would put public safety at risk and saddle state and local police with new headaches.
On Monday, Ford signed Nevada onto a comment letter from a coalition of attorneys general, sent to the Postal Service, that labels the proposal “unlawful and ultra vires” and urges the agency to scrap it, according to the Maryland Attorney General's Office. Ford also highlighted the move on X, warning that the rule would unwind hard-won safety gains in Nevada and make it easier for people who are barred from owning guns to get them.
Postal Service Proposal Would Roll Back a Near-Century Ban
The Postal Service laid out its plan in an April 2 proposed rule in the Federal Register. The rule would amend Publication 52 so that certain handguns could be treated as mailable if they meet new standards. USPS says it is updating its rules to match a recent Justice Department legal opinion, a shift that would reverse the agency’s long-standing practice of treating most concealable firearms as nonmailable.
Justice Department Opinion Sparked the Shift
On January 15, the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel issued a memorandum finding that 18 U.S.C. § 1715, the 1927 law that has long restricted mailing concealable firearms, is “unconstitutional as applied” and advising the department not to enforce that provision, according to the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel. The Postal Service cited that opinion as the trigger for its move to bring Publication 52 in line with the new legal view.
Attorneys General Say Rule Would Gut State Gun Safeguards
In their filing, the attorneys general warn that the proposed rule could let people sidestep background checks, make gun tracing harder and “impose significant state law enforcement costs,” leaving state and local agencies to pick up the slack, according to the Maryland Attorney General's Office. They also contend USPS has no authority to override a federal statute and argue that allowing people to receive concealable firearms directly in the mail would weaken states’ power to decide who can legally possess those weapons.
What Happens Next
The Postal Service’s notice in the Federal Register opened a public comment period that closed in early May, leaving the agency to sift through feedback before taking any final step. Speaking to KOLO, Ford said “our state has suffered enough,” arguing the proposal would make it easier for felons and domestic abusers to get guns and would undercut survivors of gun violence.
High-Stakes Legal Fight on the Horizon
The dispute sets up a direct clash between the Justice Department’s constitutional analysis and Congress’s nearly 100-year-old statute. The Office of Legal Counsel says section 1715 is unconstitutional as applied, while the states counter that the Postal Service cannot rewrite a clear law and that the proposal is ultra vires, potentially inviting a court battle. Attorneys general in the coalition have already urged USPS to withdraw the rule and signaled they are prepared to defend their states’ gun laws if the agency pushes ahead, according to Virginia Mercury.
