Under Florida law, does attaching a stabilizing brace to a pistol turn it into a 'short-barreled rifle'?
Plain-English summary
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody concluded that a pistol with an attached stabilizing brace is not a "short-barreled rifle" under Florida law, even though the federal ATF had announced a rule treating most braced pistols as subject to National Firearms Act controls.
Florida's definition of "short-barreled rifle" in § 790.001(11), Fla. Stat. requires a rifle, that is, a weapon with a rifled bore designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel under 16 inches or overall length under 26 inches. Chapter 790 separately defines "handgun" as a firearm capable of being carried and used with one hand, such as a pistol or revolver. The AG read those two definitions as mutually exclusive, distinguished by the firearm's fundamental design.
A stabilizing brace is an optional accessory that lets a shooter fire a handgun from the shoulder. The AG concluded that attaching one does not change the underlying weapon's essential nature: it remains a handgun, not a rifle.
The opinion expressly addresses Florida law only, and "does not address the federal government's rule or the policy on which it based the rule." The AG also conditioned the conclusion on the absence of further judicial or legislative clarification: "unless and until judicially or legislatively clarified."
What this means for you
Florida gun owners with a braced pistol
The opinion concludes that, under Florida law as analyzed in 2023, a handgun does not become a "short-barreled rifle" under § 790.001(11) simply because a stabilizing brace is attached. The AG explicitly limits this conclusion to Florida's chapter 790; the opinion does not analyze federal classification under the National Firearms Act or any ATF rule.
Florida law enforcement
The opinion reads § 790.221 (which prohibits care, custody, possession, or control of a short-barreled rifle) and § 790.001(11)'s definition as not reaching a handgun to which a stabilizing brace is attached, because attaching the brace does not change the firearm's fundamental design and operational characteristics.
Firearms dealers operating in Florida
The opinion treats "short-barreled rifle" and "handgun" as mutually exclusive categories under chapter 790, with chapter 790 regulating handguns separately rather than prohibiting them. Federal classification under ATF rules is not addressed by the opinion.
Florida legislators
The AG framed the conclusion as the reading of the 1969 statutory text and qualified it with "unless and until judicially or legislatively clarified." That language identifies the Legislature as one of two bodies that could change the analysis going forward.
Common questions
Q: Does this opinion override the federal ATF rule?
A: No. The AG wrote that the opinion "does not address the federal government's rule or the policy on which it based the rule." It analyzes Florida's chapter 790 only.
Q: What is a stabilizing brace?
A: The opinion describes a stabilizing brace as "an attachment that, when added as designed to the rear of a firearm, enables a person to fire the firearm from his or her shoulder."
Q: Why does the AG conclude a braced pistol is not a short-barreled rifle under Florida law?
A: The AG reads § 790.001(11) as defining a "short-barreled rifle" by reference to the rifle's integral, operable design (a rifled bore intended to be fired from the shoulder, with specific barrel/overall length measurements). Adding a brace, the AG concluded, changes the manner of use but not the structural characteristics that define the firearm.
Q: Could a Florida court reach a different conclusion?
A: The AG explicitly hedged: the conclusion holds "unless and until judicially or legislatively clarified." AG opinions are persuasive but not binding on courts.
Q: What did the Second District Court of Appeal say about the term "short-barreled rifle"?
A: The AG cited a Second DCA holding that the definition refers to "a weapon which in its essence is an integral, operable rifle, as the term rifle is commonly understood … whether from the shoulder or as a common hand gun," and read that as confirming that handguns made from rifle parts (and, by analogy, handguns with brace accessories) are not within the definition.
Background and statutory framework
Article I, § 8(a) of the Florida Constitution affirms the right to keep and bear arms, "except that the manner of bearing arms may be regulated by law." Chapter 790 is the Legislature's exercise of that regulatory power. Section 790.001(11) defines "short-barreled rifle" as "a rifle having one or more barrels less than 16 inches in length and any weapon made from a rifle (whether by alteration, modification, or otherwise) if such weapon as modified has an overall length of less than 26 inches." Section 790.221 makes possession of such a rifle unlawful. Both provisions were enacted in 1969.
The opinion's reasoning runs in four steps:
- Plain-meaning textualism. A rifle is a firearm with a rifled bore designed to be fired from the shoulder. A handgun is one capable of being carried and used with one hand.
- In pari materia reading. The handgun and short-barreled-rifle definitions in chapter 790 are mutually exclusive: one names use ("carried and used with one hand"), the other names structural measurement (barrel/overall length on a rifle).
- Florida appellate authority. The Second DCA's "integral, operable rifle" formulation reads the short-barreled-rifle definition narrowly.
- The Florida v. Weeks model. The Florida Supreme Court's analysis of firearm classification turns on the distinctive features of the firing system, which the AG read as consistent with focusing on the firearm's essence rather than removable accessories.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives published "Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached 'Stabilizing Braces,'" 88 Fed. Reg. 6,478 (Jan. 31, 2023), which the requesting representative described as estimating that "99% of pistols equipped with stabilizing braces will now be deemed subject to National Firearms Act controls." The Florida AG opinion responds only to whether Florida's chapter 790 definition tracks the federal classification, concluding it does not.
Citations and references
Statutes:
- § 16.01(3), Fla. Stat. (Authority to issue AG opinions)
- § 790.001, Fla. Stat. (Weapons and firearms: definitions)
- § 790.221, Fla. Stat. (Possession of short-barreled rifle, shotgun, machine gun)
- Article I, § 8(a), Florida Constitution (Right to bear arms)
Cases:
- Florida v. Weeks (Fla. Sup. Ct.), firearm classification turns on distinctive features of the firing system
Federal:
- Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached "Stabilizing Braces," 88 Fed. Reg. 6,478 (Jan. 31, 2023): the federal rule that prompted the request
Source
- Original PDF: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/print/pdf/node/26662
Original opinion text
The full opinion as issued by Attorney General Ashley Moody:
Representative Shane Abbott
Florida House of Representatives
908 US Highway 90 West
NWFSC Chautauqua Center
DeFuniak Springs, FL 32433-1436
Dear Representative Abbott:
This office received your letter, dated March 21, 2023, requesting a legal opinion pursuant to Section 16.01(3), Florida Statutes. You ask substantially the following question:
Does the definition of "short-barreled rifle" codified at section 790.001(11), Florida Statutes (2022), include a pistol with a stabilizing brace?
In sum
Unless and until judicially or legislatively clarified, I conclude that the definition of "short-barreled rifle," which the Legislature enacted in 1969, does not include a handgun, such as a pistol, to which a person attaches a stabilizing brace, because the use of such an optional accessory does not change the fundamental characteristics of the handgun.
Background
In your letter, you describe a recent rule the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) proposed, in which it set forth "factoring criteria" to "clarify" how it intends to determine whether a firearm's configuration would be subject to certain regulations. You state that ATF estimates that, under the new rule, "99% of pistols equipped with stabilizing braces will now be deemed subject to National Firearms Act controls." You raise both policy and legal concerns regarding the ATF's rule.
Although the ATF's proposed rule and other statements of the federal government concerning specific firearms prompted your request, I understand that your request specifically seeks an opinion concerning the definition of "short-barreled rifle," as codified in section 790.001(11), Florida Statutes (2022). As such, this opinion does not address the federal government's rule or the policy on which it based the rule, but instead analyzes the meaning of "short-barreled rifle" under Florida law.
Analysis
The Legislature based the various provisions of chapter 790 ("Weapons and Firearms") on Article 1, section 8(a) of the Florida Constitution, which states, in part, that "the right of the people to keep and bear arms in defense of themselves and of the lawful authority of the state shall not be infringed, except that the manner of bearing arms may be regulated by law." Based on this provision, the Legislature defined "short-barreled rifle" as "a rifle having one or more barrels less than 16 inches in length and any weapon made from a rifle (whether by alteration, modification, or otherwise) if such weapon as modified has an overall length of less than 26 inches." The Legislature then declared it "unlawful for any person to own or have in his or her care, custody, possession, or control any short-barreled rifle … which is, or may readily be made, operable."
When interpreting a statute, courts first consider the entire text of the statute and analyze its plain meaning. Courts consider statutory provisions together when such provisions are part of the same statutory scheme. When necessary, the plain and ordinary meaning of words can be ascertained by reference to a dictionary.
Both the plain language of the terms "short-barreled rifle" and "handgun" and consideration of the terms in pari materia with other terms and provisions of chapter 790 lead to the conclusion that chapter 790 regards a rifle as fundamentally distinct from a handgun, such as a pistol or revolver. A rifle refers to a firearm that has a rifled bore and is intended to be fired from the shoulder. In contrast, the Legislature recently defined "handgun" to mean "a firearm capable of being carried and used by one hand, such as a pistol or revolver."
The definition of "short-barreled rifle" includes a measurement for the maximum length of the barrel and overall length of the firearm; however, the Legislature broadly defined "handgun" as any firearm that can be carried or used with one hand, regardless of the length of its barrel. The distinction between the two definitions, one of which contains specific measurements and the other of which describes the manner of use, indicates the Legislature regards the terms as mutually exclusive. Analysis of the provisions of chapter 790 verifies that the two terms are not interchangeable: section 790.221, as noted above, prohibits the care, custody, possession, or control any short-barreled rifle; in contrast, a handgun is not prohibited, but the Legislature has established various provisions applicable to its use.
A stabilizing brace is an attachment that, when added as designed to the rear of a firearm, enables a person to fire the firearm from his or her shoulder. Attaching a stabilizing brace to a handgun only affects the manner of use in which the person using the firearm will engage: it does not affect the structural characteristics or integral nature of the handgun as commonly understood. Concluding that the addition of a stabilizing brace to a handgun would alter the fundamental characteristics of the handgun to the extent that it must be recategorized would ignore the purpose for use of a brace, as a brace can only be used with a handgun because it exists to enable a person to continue to use the handgun as the definition contemplates: with one hand. A person's choice to use a brace does not change the fundamental nature of the firearm with which the person uses it; rather, using a brace simply enables a person to hold the handgun with one hand.
Furthermore, concluding that the attachment of a brace results in recategorizing the firearm would disregard the Legislature's clear intent to define "short-barreled rifle" in a specific manner. The Second District Court of Appeal emphasized the specificity of the definition of "short-barreled rifle," and the narrow nature of considering a type of firearm as such a rifle, by holding that the definition does not contemplate "another type of weapon" such as a "common handgun" made "from rifle parts." The court stated that the definition refers to "a weapon which in its essence is an integral, operable rifle, as the term rifle is commonly understood … whether from the shoulder or as a common hand gun." Concluding that a handgun could become a short-barreled rifle by attaching a stabilizing brace would cause us to disregard the essence a rifle, which, in its "integral, operable" form, means a firearm with a rifled bore that is generally fired from a person's shoulder.
This analysis is also consistent with the Supreme Court of Florida's analytical model in Florida v. Weeks, in which the court concluded that determining whether a firearm was a "replica" of an "antique firearm" under section 790.001 depends on the characteristics and functioning of the type of firing system. The court emphasized that understanding the firing system was critical because the system is the distinctive feature of the firearm. In this regard, the court's analysis is consistent with the Second District Court of Appeal's focus on the integral, operable nature of the firearm as being critical to determining its essence. Here, the distinctive features of the essence of a handgun and a short-barreled rifle are simple: a handgun, by definition, can be fired with only one hand and, in contrast, a rifle is designed with the intention that a person will fire it from his or her shoulder, due to the length of its stock. Opting to use a stabilizing brace with a handgun does not change its fundamental characteristics.
Conclusion
Based on the foregoing, unless and until judicially or legislatively clarified, I conclude that neither section 790.001 nor section 790.221, Florida Statutes, prohibit a person from using a handgun with a stabilizing brace. The various definitions of distinct types of firearms codified at section 790.001, Florida Statutes, are based on the fundamental design and operational characteristics of each firearm. Therefore, attaching such a brace does not result in a redesign of the firearm and does not result in a different type of functionality of the firearm; instead, it only assists with the use of the firearm.
Sincerely,
Ashley Moody
Attorney General