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May 28, 2025
ATF Ditches ‘Zero Tolerance,’ Turns Page to New Era
The punishing era of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) “Zero Tolerance” policy is over. Gone are the days of a presidential administration wielding the bureau as a hammer against an industry it politically disfavored.
The ATF is returning to its role to combat violent crime and illegal firearm trafficking and assisting the firearm industry to remain in compliance with laws and regulations governing the lawful sale of firearms in the United States. It couldn’t come a moment too soon.
The Trump administration, through the Department of Justice (DOJ), announced in February that the Biden-era “Zero Tolerance” policy was dead. The Department of Justice (DOJ) followed that up with an announcement that several policies were under review and “Zero Tolerance” was eliminated. Acting ATF Director Daniel Driscoll followed that up before the Memorial Day holiday weekend with a new policy that will “promote fairness, consistency, and public safety.”
New Focus
“This update is about getting it right and making sure we’re focused on public safety,” ATF Acting Director Driscoll said in a press release. “Under the previous policy, some licensees were being penalized for simple mistakes such as, forgetting to put their license number on forms. This new guidance gives our investigators the discretion to tell the difference between an honest mistake and a real threat to public safety. Law-abiding dealers deserve a system that treats them fairly, not like suspects. They are our partners and the first line of defense in our efforts to combat firearms trafficking.”
That’s a change that NSSF has been seeking for years. NSSF noted the “blistering pace” of Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs) who faced revocations or simply surrendered their licenses under pressure by the Biden administration. NSSF was vocal in its criticisms of the Biden administration’s politicization of the ATF to attack the firearm industry. That started with the President Joe Biden calling firearm manufacturers “the enemy” from the debate stage during his run for office and continued unabated throughout his four years in office. That included the ATF, under the leadership of Director Steven Dettelbach, violating the Tiahrt Amendment to release protected firearm trace data to the Brady Center and USA Today to facilitate a politically-driven “name and shame” smear campaign against firearm retailers.
It wasn’t always this way. Former Acting Director Michael Sullivan warned that President Biden would pursue a punitive strategy to target the firearm industry when he nominated David Chipman, a former gun control lobbyist, to head up the bureau.
“The bureau doesn’t exist to diminish constitutionally guaranteed rights, but instead to combat violent crime and ensure the industry and gun owners are able to freely exercise their rights within the laws enacted by Congress,” Sullivan wrote in a Fox News column. “ATF’s reputation is dependent on remaining an apolitical, unbiased and fair law enforcement and regulatory agency. That fair treatment and respect for fundamental liberties begins at the top. The agents and inspectors in the field deserve nothing less, and the American public – whether gun owners or not – deserve equal treatment.”
In fact, it wasn’t just the ATF that the Biden administration weaponized against the firearm industry. It was nearly every facet of government that was turned against the firearm and ammunition manufacturers, distributors, exporters and importers. The Biden administration weaponized the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) to “pause” firearm and ammunition exports to review export policies. The “90-day pause” lasted more than six months before an Interim Final Rule was established to hobble exports. President Biden established a White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention that didn’t focus on the criminal misuse of firearms. Staffed by gun control lobbyists, it only attacked the lawful sale of firearms. NSSF was the first to urge President Donald Trump to do away with the office and he scrubbed it when he stepped back into The White House.
Front Line of Defense
The ATF’s announcement on Friday is a welcome one. NSSF is proud to partner with ATF to prevent firearms from being obtained or possessed by those who should never have their hands on them. That includes the partner programs of Don’t Lie for the Other GuyTM, which warns the public that lying on the ATF’s background check form to buy a gun for someone else who cannot buy on their own, or doesn’t want to be associated with sale of the firearm, is a serious federal crime that carries a sentence of up to 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. NSSF also partners with ATF for Operation Secure Store® to deter and prevent “smash-and-grab” burglaries and robberies of firearm retailers. Those criminals are a menace to communities and NSSF matches ATF reward offers for information leading to the conviction of those criminals and recovery of the stolen firearms.
Most importantly, it is often the firearm retailer that is the front-line defense to prevent firearms from being illegally straw purchased and illegally trafficked. Peter Forcelli, former ATF executive who was also one of the Fast and Furious whistleblowers and authored a book of the experience titled The Deadly Path, called for these reforms the ATF is undertaking. He said firearm retailers – and the industry at large – are “indispensable partners” in the fight against crime.
“Dealers are often the first line of defense to help identify suspicious purchases and flag possible trafficking organizations,” Forcelli wrote in an opinion column. “A partnership approach with the firearms industry is a vital component in keeping guns away from the wrong people, and it’s time for them to take that approach more seriously.”
The new policy announced by the ATF shows that a more serious and sober approach is now taking hold. That’s welcomed news to an industry that’s been steadfastly focused on preventing firearms from being illegally obtained and trafficked – even while the previous administration weaponized the bureau that regulates our products and tilted at windmills.
You may also be interested in:
A New Era of ATF Reform and Refresher of FFL Responsibilities Under BSCA
President Biden’s Whole-of-Government Gun Control Crusade Confronts Reality
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