Biden Moves to Share FFL Inspection Data, up 'Zero Tolerance' on Dealers
https://www.guns.com/news/2021/06/2...ection-data-up-zero-tolerance-on-dealers The Biden-Harris Administration on Wednesday is delivering another gun control push from the White House, blaming last year's violent crime spike on guns.
Just prior to an expected speaking event by President Biden about being tough on crime, the Oval Office released a fact sheet to the media largely focusing on just being tough on guns instead.
In addition to a repeated call to ban "assault weapons and high-capacity magazines," the briefing details how ultimately billions of taxpayer dollars authorized by the American Rescue Plan for COVID-19 and economic relief will be funneled "to reduce gun violence exacerbated by the pandemic, including prosecuting gun traffickers, rogue dealers, and other parties contributing to the supply of crime guns, as well as collaborative federal/state/local efforts to identify and address gun trafficking channels."
Mentioned in the plan is that the ATF will, for the first time, publicly post more detailed information about regulatory inspection findings of, and enforcement actions stemming from, visits to federal firearms licensees. The rate of such visits to FFLs is likely to jump as the Administration continues to call on Congress to increase funding for ATF to hire additional personnel in every field division around the country.
Getting more muscular with violations found during inspections or investigations into FFLs, the Department of Justice is set to announce this week a zero-tolerance policy that will seek to revoke the license of dealers on their first violation for such things as failing to respond to an ATF tracing request or refusing to permit ATF to conduct an inspection.
In the meantime, the ATF will begin sharing inspection data with 16 states "so that officials there can determine whether to take their own steps to shut down dealers that fail to live up to their obligations under state law."
Besides the added pressure on the country's legal firearms dealers, the White House reiterated its call to take controversial "red flag" gun seizure laws nationwide, and repeal protections for the firearms industry against frivolous lawsuits designed to run gun makers and sellers out of business.
