Wednesday, December 22, 2010

BATFE: Illegal "Emergency" Order

BATFE, under the guise of "emergency", has proposed a regulation requiring that dealers report to BATFE if they sell more than one rifle with >.22 caliber to any one individual within 2 weeks.

(It appears that .22 rifles are exempt, despite earlier confusion.)

Since this is the Obama Administration, that regulation is illegal.

...18 USC §926(b) provides "The Attorney General shall give not less than ninety days public notice, and shall afford interested parties opportunity for hearing, before prescribing such rules and regulations." This is stricter than the Admin Procedure Act's general provision for a "reasonable" comment period, and it has no emergency exceptions. ATFE is only giving 30 days' notice.

Second, the FOPA amendments were intended to cut off future requirements of direct reporting -- I say future because the existing regs (including reporting of multiple handgun sales were grandfathered in, but limited to those specific requirements. Thus far and no farther.

Both notice-period AND "direct reporting" law is being violated by BATFE.

But then, this IS the Obama Administration.

HT: Arms/Law

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