Late today the Deptartment of Justice issued a press release announcing that it would begin its controversial proposal of requiring dealers in Texas, California, Arizona and New Mexico to file multiple sales reports on the sale of certain rifles. NSSF opposes this new record-keeping requirement because ATF lacks the legal authority under the Gun Control Act to require it and, just as importantly, because it will actually make it more difficult for dealers to cooperate with ATF. This announcement comes while DOJ and ATF are being investigated for encouraging dealers to sell firearms to straw purchasers and then purposely allowing as many as 2,500 firearms to cross into Mexico. Sen. Grassley and Rep. Issa were highly critical of today’s decision, with Rep. Issa saying in a statement, “In Operation Fast and Furious, gun dealers didn’t need this regulation as they voluntarily provided ATF agents with information about suspected straw purchasers. In return for this voluntary cooperation, the Justice Department betrayed them by offering false assurances that they would closely monitor sales of weapons that dealers otherwise did not want to make.”
