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Ammunition

Since the 1960s, gun control supporters have tried to get one or another variety of ammunition banned, severely restricted, prohibitively taxed or excessively regulated, to discourage the acquisition of guns and undermine their use.

For example, though the Gun Control Act of 1968 preamble stated that the law was not intended “to place any undue or unnecessary Federal restrictions or burdens on law-abiding citizens with respect to the acquisition, possession, or use of firearms,” the law required purchasers of handgun-caliber ammunition and rifle-caliber ammunition that could be used in a handgun to sign ledgers documenting their purchases. Because the requirement resulted in a massive amount of paperwork that served no law enforcement purpose, Congress in 1982 rescinded it as it applied to .22 rimfire ammunition and in 1986, as part of the Firearms Owners Protection Act, rescinded it as it applied to center-fire ammunition.

In the 1980s, gun control supporters claimed they wanted to restrict new handgun bullets made of metals harder than lead, which had been invented to enable law enforcement officers shoot through walls and doors, but they instead pushed legislation that would have banned traditional ammunition manufactured with bullets made of lead, commonly used for self-defense, hunting and sports. The Departments of Justice and the Treasury, and the NRA, opposed the legislation and the NRA helped write the “armor piercing ammunition” law that Congress instead adopted in 1986.

In the 1990s, gun control supporters again proposed banning traditional ammunition, a move rejected by the Treasury Department. Separately, they also sought a 1,000 percent tax on 9mm, .25, and .32 caliber ammunition, a 50 percent tax on all handgun ammunition, a ban on mail-order ammunition sales, a requirement for a background check to purchase ammunition, and a limit on the amount of ammunition a person could own without an “arsenal license.” 

In February 2015, two years after failing to get Congress to ban the AR-15 and other general-purpose rifles, the Obama administration attempted to bypass Congress to ban the second most common ammunition used in the rifle. It withdrew the proposed ammunition ban after a majority in each house of Congress and over 80,000 Americans opposed the ban in letters and emails to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Congress threatened to reduce the chronically problematic agency’s budget.

Gun control supporters quickly took advantage of the situation to again call for a ban on traditional ammunition, like the bans that Congress rejected in 1986, and the Treasury Department rejected in 1997. Meanwhile, gun control supporters are trying to get traditional ammunition banned on environmental grounds as well.

 

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New York Daily News  

Friday, November 2, 2018

Where's Andrew? Cuomo's four challengers debate without him

Each of the four candidates also made it clear they have little interest in reviving a part of ...

Detroit Free Press  

Wednesday, September 19, 2018

Michigan: 'Bullet bill' would make ammo more expensive, harder to get

If he gets the ordinance passed in Wayne County, Davis said, he would like to see it implemented ...

Anti-gun Efforts to Expand U.N. Regulations to Ammunition Continue

News  

Friday, July 6, 2018

Anti-gun Efforts to Expand U.N. Regulations to Ammunition Continue

Shortly before 4:00am last Saturday morning, the two week long Third Review Conference (RevCon3) on the Programme of ...

NJ.com  

Friday, June 8, 2018

N.J. on the brink of enacting even tougher gun laws. Here are 6 new bills on Phil Murphy's desk

A half-dozen proposals, including measures that would reduce magazine capacity, armor-piercing bullets, make it tougher to obtain a ...

Miami Herald  

Monday, June 4, 2018

Democratic candidate for Florida governor wants to tax ammunition

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Chris King rolled out a bold gun violence prevention plan Friday that would create a ...

New Jersey Action Needed: Senate Committee Passes Multiple Gun Control Bills

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

New Jersey Action Needed: Senate Committee Passes Multiple Gun Control Bills

Yesterday, the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee considered and passed multiple anti-gun measures. 

New Jersey: Senate Committee Resumes Gun Control Push Monday

Friday, May 18, 2018

New Jersey: Senate Committee Resumes Gun Control Push Monday

The relentless attack on law-abiding gun owners continues next week in Trenton.  Despite New Jersey already having some ...

San Diego Union Tribune  

Monday, April 30, 2018

Why the NRA, Olympic shooter are suing California over Prop. 63 limits on ammo purchases

The NRA and an Olympic medal-winning shooter are taking California to federal court over a voter-approved measure that ...

Los Angeles Times  

Friday, April 27, 2018

NRA, Olympic shooter sue California over its restrictions on ammunition sales

The National Rifle Assn. and its state affiliate have filed a fourth lawsuit against California over its gun ...

NRA Backs CRPA Lawsuit Challenging California Ammunition Sales Restrictions

News  

Friday, April 27, 2018

NRA Backs CRPA Lawsuit Challenging California Ammunition Sales Restrictions

The California Rifle and Pistol Association, with support from the National Rifle Association, today filed an important lawsuit in ...

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NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.