The District of Columbia has filed a motion to stay the Palmer v. District of Columbia ruling. For an analysis of this late breaking news, see this report by Fox News DC. These events will continue to be fluid for the next hours and even months as such motions and appeals are filed. 

For those who missed the recent announcement, the District Court of the District of Columbia stayed its decision in Palmer v. District of Columbia. That decision struck down DC's restrictions on carrying firearms in public. Several days later the same court and presiding judge, the Honorable Frederick J. Scullin Jr., issued a 90-day stay to allow the District of Columbia to enact a law regulating the issuance of permits to carry firearms in public. For more details, see this story. 

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) announced it has slashed the backlog of applications for NFA firearms by 30%. Firearms regulated by the NFA, or National Firearms Act, include silencers, vintage machine guns, and short barrel rifles and shotguns. In recent years the increased interest in these firearms resulted in a backlog for ATF as they processed the registration and tax payment for each firearm. Consequently ATF often took 12 or so months to issue a tax stamp for each NFA firearm. Now an increase in personnel, along with a budget for over time and a 7 day work week, has reduced the backlog from 81,000 to 56,000 pending applications. This means ATF is processing more applications than they are receiving--something they have not accomplished since 2009. 

Already Arsenal Attorneys' clients have experienced faster processing of their tax stamps. Instead of waiting 12 months, 8-9 months is becoming more common, and many expect 6 months to become the new normal in the near future.  Our sources claim ATF's goal is to issue tax stamps within 4 months.

These these estimates, however, concern paper applications. ATF eFile is an even faster option exists is available to those using a solution like our Arsenal Gun Trust. This online system recently issued tax stamps in 90 days, but it was recently shut down for repairs. Since the partial relaunch in June, some tax stamps are being issued in 30 days or less. To reiterate, the faster eFile system is available only to those using a legal entity like the Arsenal Gun Trust. Currently eFile accepts applications to build an NFA firearm. ATF estimates they eFile will accept applications for transfers in the coming months.

The Washington Times featured Arsenal Attorneys' Managing Attorney Matthew Bergstrom in its story on the lastest ATF proposal for an executive order which would create new regulations concerning firearms lost during shipment between gun dealers. ATF had previously abandoned a similar proposal in 2000. You can find the story here. 

This latest proposal from ATF follows a recent pattern of proposing new regulations with limited information provided to the public concerning ATF's data or analysis. Furthermore, the cost of these regulations to gun dealers, gun owners, and tax payers has received little attention. The public has been given only 30 days to provide their comments to the proposal.

According to our industry partners, ATF has increased the number of personnel assigned to the NFA Branch. This surge has resulted in the faster issuance of tax stamps for NFA firearms, such as silencers, machine guns, and short barrel rifles and shotguns. 

Previously only 9 examiners handled the workload of the NFA Branch. As of now, that number has risen to 15, and ATF is training an additional 11 examiners to join the Branch. ATF also announced they are training field agents to assist these efforts to reduce the current backlog of applications for tax stamps. Finally, ATF's Deputy Assistant Director Marvin Richardson said these personnel would be working 7 days/week.

The allocation of these resources dispels rumors ATF intended to prolong tax stamp processing in effort to curtail the transfer and manufacture of NFA firearms. Instead, ATF is prepared to handle the every-increasing interest in NFA firearms.

A story by Washington Times reporter Kelly Ridell quotes Arsenal Attorneys' Managing Attorney Matthew Bergstrom today on the regulatory burden on gun dealers (Federal Firearms Licensees or 'FFLs'). In the article, Mr. Bergstrom addressed the difficult political climate for FFLs.