In line with a newfound policy to end its former anti-gun tendencies under the Biden administration, the federal gun regulator is promising a "new era of reform."
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced the new chapter in its 52-year history last week.
Among the changes would be to the previously announced suspension of the Biden-era "zero tolerance" policy on minor paperwork errors that caused dozens of federal firearms licensees to lose their license – and livelihood. A new Administrative Action Policy "that emphasizes firearm traceability and public safety and deemphasizes immaterial paperwork errors," will now be the way. Those who had their licenses revoked or surrendered under the past policy are invited to reapply for a new FFL, with the applications "judged under the new Administrative Action Policy."
In the future, dealer inspections will be uniform across the country, rather than at the whim of individual inspectors.
The ATF also plans to establish a Senior Industry Partnership Advisor/Liaison position in the director's office to "address industry concerns and foster productive engagement." Such a position has been advocated by gun rights and firearms trade groups.
As for new firearms classifications, those will now have to go through a board and be approved by the director.
Other reforms include greenlighting the import of non-lethal training ammunition, like those made by UTM and Simunition. The Biden administration had blocked them from import in October 2023. The agency also plans to reverse a ban on the importation of "dual-use" barrels.
Going public once again with relevant data, the agency plans to release a "Firearms Commerce in the United States" report soon. Covering topics such as firearm production and the number of suppressors in circulation, the last annual Commerce report was released in March 2021, leaving the figures effectively frozen in time.
In efforts to cut down on paperwork and hassle, the agency plans to change the old-fashioned ATF Form 20, used to seek permission to move registered National Firearms Act devices interstate, to a simple notification system. Also inbound are electronic signatures on NFA forms and a simplified ATF Form 4473.
The Brady compliant state chart has been updated.
Finally, the agency promised it would be "reviewing all current regulations to identify and eliminate outdated or unnecessary rules."
Since the change in administrations in Washington earlier this year, the ATF has lost much of its senior management from the director on down, often replaced by more pro-2A leaders.
The agency has been warned by Republicans on Capitol Hill to get behind the new administration's views on gun rights, while other lawmakers have promised to scrap the agency outright.
Banner image: CZ Nocturne P09C 9mm with a Holosun 507K green dot and a Streamlight TLR-7A white light. The ammo is Federal's 124-grain Syntech Training Match and Federal Premium's 147-grain Gold Medal Action Pistol load. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
