On February 11, 2014, the White House announced a National Strategy for Combating Wildlife Trafficking. One of the many aspects of the National Strategy is to ban the commercial trade of elephant ivory inside the United States. The Administration plans on banning the domestic sale of legally owned ivory in an upcoming rule.



In response to the White House's announcement, the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing titled, "International Wildlife Trafficking Threats to Conservation and National Security" (Hearing may be viewed here). During this hearing, Director Ashe confirmed the NRA's concerns regarding the domestic trade and sale of ivory inside the United States. Director Ashe stated if you own a firearm that contains any amount of ivory that is less than 100 years old, you will not be able to sell this firearm.



Why does this matter to every NRA member? This is another attempt by this anti-gun Administration to ban firearms based on cosmetics and would render many collections/firearms valueless.



Any firearm, firearm accessory, or knife that contains ivory, no matter how big or small, would not be able to be sold in the United States, unless it is more than 100 years old. This means if your shotgun has an ivory bead or inlay, your revolver or pistol has ivory grips, your knife has an ivory handle, or if your firearm accessories, such as cleaning tools that contain any ivory, the item would be illegal to sell.



Please email and call the White House at 202-456-1111 and email and call the Fish and Wildlife Service at 1-800-344-9453, to let them know you oppose the ban on commercial sale and trade of legally owned firearms with ivory components.



Also, please call your U.S. Representative at 202-224-3121 and tell them the same.



Your actions today may determine if these firearms that contain ivory will be banned. We will continue to keep you informed as this issue progresses.