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BATFE, Firearm Importation & Federal Firearm Law Reform

Among its duties, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) monitors firearm manufacturers, importers and dealers for compliance with record-keeping requirements; conducts traces on the commercial paths of individual firearms at the request of law enforcement agencies; interprets firearm importation law; and administers transfers of firearms regulated by the National Firearm Act of 1934.

The BATFE was used by the Clinton administration to reduce the number of firearm dealers, and by the administrations of presidents G. H. W. Bush and Clinton to restrict “assault weapons” by misinterpreting firearm importation law. The agency’s tracing data, sometimes useful in identifying persons involved in illegally trafficking firearms, have been mischaracterized by gun control supporters in the context of their campaigns against “Saturday Night Specials” and “assault weapons,” and in favor of making state gun laws more restrictive.

BATFE has been widely criticized for its role in the “Ruby Ridge” and “Waco” tragedies, and Operation Fast and Furious, in which the agency knowingly allowed firearms to be bought by straw purchasers and other traffickers, and thereafter smuggled from the United States to Mexico, where they made their way to violent drug cartels.

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Associated Press  

Wednesday, October 17, 2018

Ruling: Kansas gun law no defense to federal firearm charges

An appeals court on Tuesday upheld the firearms convictions against two Kansas men who mistakenly believed that a ...

No, It’s Not Harder to Buy Allergy Medicine than a Gun

News  

Friday, September 14, 2018

No, It’s Not Harder to Buy Allergy Medicine than a Gun

A twist on an inaccurate old anti-gun talking point is making the rounds on social media. On September ...

Reason  

Thursday, June 14, 2018

Unable to Ban Guns, Lawmakers Want to Weaponize the ATF Against Gun Dealers

What's a politician to do when it's clear that people will vigorously resist attempts to restrict their lives? ...

Orlando Weekly  

Tuesday, June 5, 2018

Florida Sen. Bill Nelson wants to create a gun registration database

Federal law prohibits the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives from creating an electronic, accessible database of ...

Associated Press  

Monday, May 14, 2018

New Jersey: Quick release of gun data called trailblazing and troubling

Gun control advocates are hailing New Jersey’s release of near-real-time firearms trafficking data as a trailblazing use of ...

The Hill  

Wednesday, March 7, 2018

Gun crackdowns have already led to too many federal abuses

Gun control advocates have called for prohibiting possession of AR-15 rifles — a ban that could create five ...

Cutting the Data: Strong Interest in Suppressors Continued in 2017

News  

Friday, March 2, 2018

Cutting the Data: Strong Interest in Suppressors Continued in 2017

The number of Form 4 applications received by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE) in ...

You’ve Got Fail: Investigation into Online Gun Sales Backfires on Gun Controllers

News  

Friday, January 5, 2018

You’ve Got Fail: Investigation into Online Gun Sales Backfires on Gun Controllers

In yet another embarrassment for the gun control lobby, a government investigation of online gun sales designed to ...

City of Chicago Uses Trace Report to Deflect From Its Own Failed Governance

News  

Second Amendment  

Friday, November 3, 2017

City of Chicago Uses Trace Report to Deflect From Its Own Failed Governance

This week brought more proof that Chicago’s feckless public officials have perfected the art of scapegoating.

Breitbart  

Thursday, October 5, 2017

NRA to Congress: Let ATF Re-Evaluate Bump Stocks; Do Your Job, and Pass National Reciprocity

The National Rifle Association (NRA) released a statement on October 5 calling on Congress to allow the Bureau ...

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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.