Purpose:

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) is seeking public comments on a proposal to amend its regulations to ensure that firearms lost or stolen in transit are timely and properly reported as required by law. In addition, ATF is proposing to streamline the reporting requirements when the lost/stolen firearm is registered under the National Firearms Act (NFA), reducing the number of reports required of Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs). From FY 2008 through FY 2012, in an average of 1,525 crime gun traces per year, FFLs claimed to have never received the firearm allegedly shipped to it and no one reported the theft or loss to ATF. The Gun Control Act (GCA) requires FFLs to report lost or stolen firearms to ATF and to the appropriate local authorities within 48 hours; however, when the loss or theft occurs in transit between FFLs or non-licensees, the GCA does not specify who should report such loss or theft. This proposal seeks to ensure that such losses and thefts do not continue to go unreported by clarifying that it is the sender or transferor that is the appropriate reporting party, because it is the sender that is in the best position to know when and how the firearms were shipped and to follow-up with the shipping service provider to determine what may have occurred. Understanding that sender/transferor FFLs will not always have timely information regarding firearms that have not shown up at their destination, the rule proposes that the reporting requirement be triggered when the sender learns that the firearm did not arrive. The proposal would require the FFL that was the transferor/sender to reflect the theft or loss of a firearm as a disposition entry in its records no later than 7 days following discovery of the theft or loss. FFLs reporting a theft or loss of a firearm that later discover the whereabouts of the firearm(s) must notify ATF that the firearm has been located and adjust their records by re-entering the firearm as an acquisition or disposition entry as appropriate. ATF also proposes to reduce the reporting burden on FFLs when the theft or a loss of a firearm is registered under the NFA. The Federal Firearms Licensee Firearms Inventory Theft/Loss Report (ATF Form 3310.11) will allow for simultaneous reporting of the information to the National Tracing Center and the NFA Branch, eliminating the current practice of requiring separate, written reports.