A little-known device called a "bump stock" is attached to a semi-automatic rifle at the Gun Vault store and shooting range in South Jordan, Utah. The NRA so far has declined to weigh in on whether Congress should ban the devices. | Rick Bowmer/AP Photo NRA bans bump stocks at its own firing range The gun-rights group on Thursday said such devices should be subjected to additional regulations.

The firing range at the National Rifle Association headquarters, like many ranges across the nation, bans the use of bump fire systems such as the one used by Las Vegas shooter Stephen Paddock, according to firearms experts.

Bump stocks increase the speed at which bullets are fired and cause the entire weapon to move back and forth in the shooter’s grip. While the devices are said to convert semiautomatic weapons into fully automatic ones, they also decrease accuracy and are less safe, the experts say.


An NRA spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the group’s shooting range in Fairfax, Virginia. Sources familiar with the range confirmed that bump stocks are banned there.

The NRA on Thursday further distanced itself from the devices, calling for additional regulation of bump fire stocks while also warning that more sweeping gun bans “will do nothing to prevent future attacks.”

The devices have escaped regulation from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives after that agency issued a 2010 letter exempting them from oversight.

"Devices designed to allow semi-automatic rifles to function like fully-automatic rifles should be subject to additional regulations," the NRA said in a written statement. "Despite the fact that the Obama administration approved the sale of bump fire stocks on at least two occasions, the National Rifle Association is calling on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) to immediately review whether these devices comply with federal law."

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It's a highly unusual position for the NRA, which has long fought any restrictions on gun ownership, and the move could be strategic. New, narrow regulation from the BATFE might be more acceptable to gun owners than legislation, which could cast a wider net.

Bump stocks also have a limited constituency, as many enthusiasts consider them to be unsafe.

House Speaker Paul Ryan said Thursday that he would consider looking into a ban, and some top Senate Republicans signaled Wednesday that they would be willing to consider legislation. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders also said Thursday that the administration is “open to” reviewing policy on bump stocks.

“We’re certainly open to that moving forward,” she said during a briefing to reporters. “We want to be part of that conversation as it takes place in the coming days and weeks.”

Several of Paddock’s guns were outfitted with bump stocks, which he fired from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, killing 58 people and injuring more than 500 others.

Firearms lobbyists have begun raising questions about whether the issue is a matter for Congress, or whether the devices could be subject to regulation by the BATFE.

In 2010, the ATF found that bump stocks were not currently subject to regulation after Slide Fire, a leading manufacturer of the accessory, had asked for an evaluation of the devices.

“The stock has no automatically functioning mechanical parts or springs and performs no automatic mechanical function when installed,” the ATF wrote in a June 7, 2010, letter to Slide Fire. “Accordingly, we find that the ‘bump-stock’ is a firearm part and is not regulated as a firearm under Gun Control Act or the National Firearms Act.”

The letter was signed by John Spencer, chief of the firearms technology branch of ATF.

An ATF spokeswoman did not immediately respond to questions.

Firing ranges typically limit the rate at which guns are fired for safety reasons, said Paul Valone, president of Grass Roots North Carolina, a gun rights organization.

“If someone is not trained to fire rapidly they may miss, frankly, and hit things like the ceiling of the range and other areas which could cause damage and safety issues,” Valone said. Automatic weapons also typically are banned at ranges. The bump-stock system is useless for target practice and not widely used by gun enthusiasts, he said.

“Because it’s notoriously inaccurate, it’s really not a threat to anybody except in one, and only one, circumstance, and that’s when you’re on the 32nd floor of a building shooting into a mass of people,” Valone said.

Slide Fire has stopped taking orders, according to a notice on its website. The Moran, Texas, manufacturer did not immediately respond to a phone call.

Rachael Bade and Josh Dawsey contributed to this report.