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Vital Messages Brought to Capitol Hill
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REAL GROWTH. REAL JOBS. REAL IMPACT. . . . NSSF member company executives were in Washington, D.C., last week for the highly productive seventh annual congressional "Fly-In." The firearms and ammunition industry executives met with members of both houses of Congress to discuss such matters as the $37.7 billion national economic impact of the firearms industry, the need for revenue-neutral measures to allow the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to reduce the currently lengthy backlogs in form-processing times, and the opportunity to improve the provision of safety information and gun locks through law enforcement agencies across the country by re-starting funding of Project ChildSafe. NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane said of the Fly-In, "We always welcome the opportunity to speak with our elected representatives to help ensure that the economic contribution of our industry members is understood and that we continue to work on a bipartisan basis to help ensure that our members can continue to engage in lawful commerce, grow their businesses and create even more good-paying jobs here in America." See the ad run in Politico, Roll Call and The Hill to help deliver the message to federal lawmakers that the firearms industry exercises real economic impact.
- INDUSTRY ECONOMIC IMPACT NEARLY DOUBLES IN FIVE YEARS . . . The total economic impact of the firearms and ammunition industry in the United States increased from $19.1 billion in 2008 to $37.7 billion in 2013, a 97 percent increase, while the total number of full-time equivalent jobs rose from more than 166,000 to more than 245,000, a 48 percent increase in that five-year period, according to a new National Shooting Sports Foundation report. Stephen L. Sanetti, NSSF President and Chief Executive Officer, notes that "While our nation's overall economic recovery has been slow since 2008, our industry has been a true bright spot, increasing our direct workforce by nearly half, adding jobs that pay an average of more than $47,700 in wages and benefits." The Firearms and Ammunition Industry Economic Impact Report: 2013 provides a state-by-state breakdown of job numbers, wages and output covering direct, supplier and induced employment, as well as federal excise taxes paid. Access the full report here.
Government Relations
- REID: NO BACKGROUND CHECK EXPANSION BILL WILL REACH SENATE FLOOR . . . U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has said that any legislation to expand the current National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) will not be considered on the Senate floor following Wednesday's shooting involving an apparently mentally unstable soldier at Fort Hood in Texas. Though Reid pledged last year to bring gun-control legislation back to the floor, he said there are insufficient votes for passage and he won't move a bill until he can count enough positive votes. Reid understands that any vote to expand background checks would pose a huge political problem for vulnerable red-state Democrats seeking re-election this year.
 GOV. HEINEMAN SIGNS NEBRASKA FIXNICS REPORTING BILL . . . NSSF-sponsored FixNICS legislation, LB 1035, which was amended into LB 699, was signed into law by Gov. David Heineman last week. LB 699 mandates biannual reporting of mental-health records by the Nebraska State Patrol to ensure the state continues to send the records into NICS. Since portions of LB 699 had an emergency clause, the legislation went into effect immediately. NSSF introduced this legislation to ensure the records continue to be transmitted to NICS.
- IS THE END NEAR FOR FAILED BALLISTICS IMAGING IN MARYLAND? . . . NSSF's ongoing effort to repeal Maryland's ballistics imaging (IBIS) law received a victory last week with the inclusion of language into this year's budget that requires the state police to develop a report on imaging and present it to the state legislature by the end of the year. Some of the areas the budget committee would like to see addressed include: how the program has been used over the last four years; its effectiveness in solving crimes; and its overall benefit to criminal investigations. In the past, the Maryland State Police have been critical of the program and have issued two reports looking to do away with IBIS, citing it as a drain on law enforcement resources. State police are still collecting the required casings, but they are not entering them into the system because the program is no longer funded, even though manufacturers and retailers still must comply. Maryland is the only state left with this requirement after NSSF successfully worked to repeal the law in New York in 2012. NSSF will continue to work toward repeal in Maryland.
- POLL: MOST AMERICANS DON'T BUY GUN-CONTROL SPIN . . . A new Rasmussen Reports national survey finds only 40 percent of "likely U.S. voters" believe that the United States needs stricter gun-control laws. This poll records a nine-point drop from last May. As the Rasmussen press release notes, "Fifty-three percent do not think the country needs tougher gun control laws, the highest level of opposition in over two years." The results nearly mirror a January Gallup poll that showed the percentage of Americans favoring stricter gun laws fell 7 points in 2014, from 38 to 31 percent. The country's overall dissatisfaction with U.S. gun laws and policies has increased to 55 percent this year, up from 51 percent in 2013. Read NSSF President Steve Sanetti's view of what these two major poll results mean.
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ATF TAKES E-FORMS PROGRAM OFF LINE UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE . . . The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) late last week took its troubled eForms systems offline. NSSF has been working to get additional resources to improve all ATF's interactions with federally licensed firearms retailers, including form-processing times. Users of the system were told by ATF in an email that “The eForms software is not performing to our expectations. As a result, we are taking the eForms system down until further notice. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience as we work with our industry partners to deliver a quality product. Any eForm (already) submitted will continue to be processed. The finalized forms will be sent to the user via email. Until the eForms system is returned to service for the industry, all imports forms (Forms 6 Part I and 6A), NFA forms (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9 and 10), and AFMER reports (Form 5300.11) must be submitted via paper, including any eForms in draft status.” Questions should be directed to eForms.admin@atf.gov. NSSF will keep you apprised of developments.
For more Government Relations news, read NSSF's latest Government Relations Update.
NSSF Industry Summit
- LEADERS IN THE INDUSTRY ATTENDING SUMMIT . . . A number of industry leaders are already committed to attending the 2014 NSSF Industry Summit. Representatives from Smith & Wesson, Cor-Bon/Glaser and Lew Horton Distributing, to name a few, will be part of the discussion. Make your ideas part of our industry's future by attending this year's Industry Summit. Register Today.
Ranges
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 REGISTER FOR LEAD MANAGEMENT AND OSHA COMPLIANCE WORKSHOP . . . Protect your business by attending the NSSF Lead Management and OSHA Compliance Workshop in Dallas May 18-20. Registration is open for the only edition of this event to be presented in 2014. Range owners beware: OSHA inspections are on the rise, resulting in heavy fines for shooting range operators. Knowledge and Lead Best Management Practices are key to defending your business, and you can get this critical information at the workshop. Space, however, is limited, so sign up now. En-Range and Western Range have recently committed to join MT2 as workshop sponsors.
Retailers
- SEMINARS SLATED IN TEXAS THIS MONTH . . . Three NSSF Retailer Education Seminars are scheduled in Texas this month: April 15 and 16 in Houston and April 22 in San Antonio. All firearms retailers in the region are encouraged to register to attend one of these five-hour seminars designed to help FFL holders stay in compliance.
These seminars are free to NSSF members and $100 per person for non-members. Register to attend or find out more about NSSF Membership.
Research
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 NSSF-ADJUSTED NICS BACKGROUND CHECKS . . . The March 2014 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 1,224,705 is the second highest March on record for the system, even with a decrease of 18.4 percent compared to the March 2013 NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 1,501,730. For comparison, the unadjusted March 2014 NICS figure of 2,476,610 reflects a 12.7 percent increase from the unadjusted NICS figure of 2,197,116 in March 2013. The unusually large difference in the NSSF-adjusted and unadjusted NICS numbers appears to be due to the submission by North Carolina of monthly background checks for CCW permits. Read the NSSF press release.
News of Note
- LEAD PLAINTIFF IN CHALLENGE TO CHICAGO HANDGUN BAN PASSES . . . His name is synonymous with the U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned Chicago's handgun ban and extended the Second Amendment right to own a firearm for lawful purposes to states and cities, Otis McDonald died last Friday at 80. The Chicago Sun-Times noted McDonald was an effective spokesman for gun rights, in part, because of “the simple but eloquent way he expressed his desire to have a handgun to protect himself and his family from the gun-toting drug dealers who set up shop just outside his front door and the burglars who broke into his Morgan Park home.” Read story.
 NSSF SUPPORTS FARM SAFETY DAYS . . . For 10 years, NSSF has supported the Progressive Agriculture Foundation's Safety Day program to help keep children in rural areas safe around firearms. Through NSSF's Project ChildSafe program, PAF Safety Day coordinators and their area's sheriffs will provide gun locks and safety literature to participants. To find out if there is a Safety Day near you, go to www.progressiveag.org. Parents interested in having their child participate should contact the local Safety Day coordinator. Read the press release.
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'ACTIVE SHOOTER' TERM ABUSED . . . In a USA Today column, criminologist James Alan Fox pointed out how the once-obscure term “active shooter” has been adopted by media and gun-control advocates to promote the idea that an epidemic of mass shootings is occurring in America. “In sharp contrast to the 'active shooter panic' is that mass shootings, instances in which four or more are killed by gunfire, are not on the rise. . . . The only increase has been in publicity and dread,” writes Fox, a Northeastern University professor. He added, “Excessive alarm, fueled by misleading news reports, leads to knee-jerk responses that are not necessarily for the best.” Read story.
U.S. SHOOTERS MEDAL AT WORLD CUP OPENER . . . On the final day of the first International Shooting Sports Federation World Cup match of the season, Americans Keith Sanderson of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Nick Mowrer of Butte, Mont., earned medals. Sanderson claimed gold in Men's Rapid Fire Pistol, while Mowrer took a third-place bronze in the Men's Prone Rifle Event. The two joined Sara Scherer, Woburn, Mass., who earned the USA Shooting team's first medal when she took a bronze in the Women's Three-Position Rifle event. The World Cup USA was held at Fort Benning, Ga.
- 'SHOOT LIKE A GIR'' VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS COLLEGIAN AND HER UNIVERSITY . . . Relatively tiny Schreiner University, near Kerrville, in the Texas Hill Country received due recognition on television and the Internet because of its accomplished shooting team. The center of attention, Drucilla Meier, the team captain, serves as an ideal spokeswoman and subject for the university and the sport in this video. Schreiner, which has produced top-flight collegiate shooters, has been supported by NSSF's Collegiate Shooting Sports Initiative. Watch this video, which demonstrates to the narrator, who gave clay birds a try, that he should “always shoot like a girl”—if he can.
- EQUITY FIRM ACQUIRES HUNTER'S SPECIALTIES . . . Austin, Texas-based Peak Rock Capital, a private equity firm, has acquired Hunter's Specialties Inc., the well-known supplier of hunting accessories. Founded in 1977 and headquartered in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Hunter's Specialties' portfolio includes scent-control products, game calls, attractants, wildlife management products and general hunting accessories. Read more.
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