ATF Seeks to Impose Long Gun Reporting in Border States

If you’re one of the nearly 71 million Americans who live in the four southwest border states, some of your gun purchases may soon be reported to the federal government. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) seeks to require all of the 8,500 firearm dealers in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to report all sales of two or more semiautomatic rifles within five consecutive business days, if the rifles are larger than .22 caliber and use detachable magazines. For example, a dealer would have to tell the government every time a deer hunter in Phoenix or Houston finds a good deal on a pair of semi-auto .223s or .30-06s.

The NRA states: “The ATF has no legal authority to demand these reports, and the flood of new paperwork will waste scarce law enforcement resources that should be spent on legitimate investigations. Every concerned gun owner’s voice should be heard on this critically important issue.”

Unfortunately, there are only a few days left to comment on this proposal. Comments will be accepted until Monday, February 14.

To read the ATF proposal, CLICK HERE. | To read the NRA’s comments, CLICK HERE.

If you comment on the ATF long-gun registration proposal, be sure to cite the Dec. 17, 2010 “Notice of Information Collection Under Review: Report of Multiple Sale or Other Disposition of Certain Rifles.”