Scott: Speaking Up Leads to ATF Backing Off Overreach

Press Release

Following yesterday's letter from 53 U.S. Senators, including Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Tim Scott (R-SC), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has rescinded a new proposal that would have severely limited access to rifle ammunition primarily used for sporting purposes. The framework as proposed by the ATF would have set arbitrary guidelines for determining whether certain ammunition meets the 1986 law's "sporting purposes" exemption. As a result, access to rifle ammunition long considered to be primarily used for activities such as target shooting and hunting could be limited. This class of ammunition is protected from prohibition under a 1986 Law Enforcement Officer Protection Act exemption.

In the letter to ATF Director Todd Jones, the senators charged that the proposed framework defied the intent of Congress when it passed the 1986 law. They also questioned ATF's authority to establish such a framework and expressed concern for its impact on Second Amendment rights guaranteed in the Constitution. "No federal statute…interferes with the ability of law-abiding citizens to obtain ammunition commonly used for such legitimate purposes as target shooting, hunting, and shooting competitions. Nor could any such statute do so consistent with the Second Amendment. ATF should not propose in the future to ban any widely used form of ammunition used by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes," the senators wrote.

Today, Senator Scott said, "I am pleased to see the ATF has backed off their proposal limiting ammunition primarily used for sporting purposes. When the American people speak up, government overreach can be defeated, and I was pleased to join many Americans as well as 52 of my colleagues in expressing concern over the ATF's plans."

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