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HOUSE PASSES COBLE ATF REFORM BILL

	Rep. Howard Coble

Washington, Sep 26 -  The House of Representatives today approved a bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Howard Coble (R-NC) that calls for reforming the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Rep. Coble and Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA), the authors of the bill, H.R. 5092, said that their legislation will grant the ATF additional tools to penalize gun dealers who have minor violations of reporting requirements, while allowing the agency to go after those gun dealers who are truly breaking the law.

“Despite what the critics said,” Congressman Coble said, “our bill puts additional muscle in the arm of the ATF. Our goal is to give ATF agents extra tools to fight illegal gun sales while protecting the rights of law-abiding citizens.”

The Coble-Scott bill, which passed by a vote of 277-131, establishes graduated penalties for civil violations by federal firearms licensees, including fines, suspension and/or revocation against licensees who violate gun laws. The penalties are graduated based on whether the violation is a “serious” or “non-serious” violation. The nature and severity of the violation, the size of the firearm business, and the prior record for compliance are considered in determining the civil penalty imposed. The Coble-Scott bill clarifies ATF’s enforcement efforts to focus on criminal and regulatory violations of the federal firearms, explosives, alcohol, and tobacco smuggling laws. The legislation also establishes new regulatory hearing procedures to require the review of ATF’s licensing decisions to be performed by a neutral Administrative Law Judge and sets deadlines for the completion of hearings and review. Finally, it also requires ATF to establish formal investigative guidelines similar to other federal law enforcement agencies.

House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement upon House passage of the bill: “This bill strengthens the enforcement efforts of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and gives the agency much-needed flexibility to distinguish between those who intentionally and knowingly violate our laws and those who make simple mistakes. The measure builds a sense of fairness into the enforcement system while giving the agency greater authority to punish those who willfully break our laws. Rep. Coble should be commended for his work on this bill which protects the Second Amendment rights of every citizen.”

The ATF reform bill is part of the American Values Agenda unveiled by House Republican leaders in June. House Republicans have acted on numerous bills that comprise the agenda, and it has complemented the broader House Republican agenda that was unveiled by GOP leaders back in March. The bill still must be approved by the Senate.