Ohio Senate passes BFA-backed SB 214 to remove firearm mufflers, suppressors as dangerous ordnance

The Ohio Senate on March 25 passed Senate Bill 214, which would remove firearm mufflers and suppressors from the classification of dangerous ordnance.

The vote was 31-1, with Beth Liston (D-Dublin) the lone dissenter.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Kyle Koehler (R-Springfield) and supported by Buckeye Firearms Association, proposes revisions to the Ohio Revised Code, eliminating suppressors and mufflers from the definition of dangerous ordnance and removing language that mandates suppressor registration under the National Firearms Act of 1934. BFA's Rob Sexton testified in favor of SB 214 in June 2025.

Currently, the NFA tax stamp on suppressors and short-barreled rifles and shotguns has been reduced from $200 to $0, effective Jan. 1. However, both remain subject to the NFA.

On Feb. 26, 2026, Buckeye Firearms Association (BFA) joined plaintiffs in filing a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the NFA. The case, Roberts v. ATF (2:26-CV-91-SCM), was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.

Roberts builds upon Brown v. ATF, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri in August 2025, and Jensen v. ATF, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in October 2025.

The bill, which is identical to a stalled House Bill 331 (see our previous story), will now move to the Ohio House of Representatives, and we thank Sen. Koehler for his work on this important legislation.

To see where BFA stands on all gun-related bills in the Ohio General Assembly, check out our Legislation page.

Joe D. "Buck" Ruth, a pen name for Scott Hummel, is a longtime small-game hunter and gun owner who spent nearly three decades in the news industry. He is the website and social-media manager for Buckeye Firearms Association.