U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines helped reintroduced the “ATF Accountability Act” to provide transparency to Montana gun owners on rules made by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). The ATF engages in a secretive classification review process where the agency makes decisions about whether a particular firearm is regulated by the National Firearms Act. Decisions and justification for decisions are often only made available to manufacturers in private correspondence. This causes a lot of uncertainty for both gun-owning Montanans and firearm manufacturers, especially in combination with the ATF’s refusal to make final public rules regarding classification.
“For too long unelected bureaucrats at the ATF in Washington, DC have been making decisions on the classification status of firearms behind closed doors. We need transparency and accountability at the ATF so law abiding Montana gun owners and gun manufacturers are never left in the dark,” said Senator Daines.
The “ATF Accountability Act”:
- Creates an appeals process following a ruling by ATF with specific regular timeframes
- Permits gun manufacturers to appeal the legal status or classification of any product by filing with the Director of Industry Operations with jurisdiction. After which, the appeal is directed to an administrative law judge
Read the bill text HERE