Posted on 01/02/2007 9:38:21 AM PST by neverdem
131 licenses revoked in 2006 amid closer federal scrutiny of record-keeping
With little fanfare, the federal government has substantially increased the number of licenses it has taken away from gun dealers over the past five years, according to newly obtained statistics.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives pulled federal firearms licenses from 22 gun dealers across the country in 2001. That number increased almost six-fold last year when ATF revoked 131 licenses, statistics show.
Despite the increase, license revocations remain exceedingly rare and the number pales in comparison with the roughly 105,000 people and businesses nationwide permitted to sell firearms and ammunition.
Advocates for stronger gun control seized on the figures obtained by The Sun from ATF, saying that an increase in license revocations is more than appropriate after years of poor regulation.
"It's out of control. There is no responsibility. There is no accountability. There is a problem in the neighborhoods in this country with the drastic proliferation of guns," said Joseph J. Vince Jr., former chief of ATF's firearms division, who now runs a private consulting company specializing in helping local law enforcement agencies track firearms. "The laws are so lax that there is almost no enforcement."
But the news alarmed gun rights advocates who are worried about new emphasis on "technical" paperwork errors that could shut down legitimate gun shops.
"There is a Damocles' sword that's hanging over dealers' heads," said Stephen Schneider, president of the Maryland License Firearms Dealers Association and owner of Atlantic Guns in Rockville. "We're a legitimate business, and yet they feel like they may not be in business the next year for record-keeping violations."
The debate still simmers in Washington, where the House of Representatives passed a bill last fall to revamp enforcement rules for gun dealers, establishing fines and...
(Excerpt) Read more at baltimoresun.com ...
But that's okay. He's promised to protect us after he's disarmed us.
A new store opened up just south of me in 2006.
Any figures on new start up dealers with new licenses?
newsflash - Bush is President now
I am sure gun shows are part of the change in the market.
I'm not registering to read the rest of this article. But, are there examples of this "technical" paperwork or are they justified in denying the dealer's license.
"zealous enforecement"
What does that mean?
LOL! This, too, is Bush's fault!
"I am sure gun shows are part of the change in the market."
Bingo. Come to think of it, I have only bought one gun from a store.
You can't change the subject like that. IF the gun stores aren't keeping accurate records and get closed down, it's their own fault. Who are you voting for? Romney?
The gun show is about once a quarter here. I don't buy any more often than that.
Why buy from a gun store? I found that I get a better deal at gun shows in terms of guns and especially bulk ammo.
"I found that I get a better deal at gun shows in terms of guns and especially bulk ammo."
Indeed.
Rudy???
NEVER!
I know of 2 in Austin, TX
[/s]
My favorite closed here in L.A.
Looking for a new one (if anyone else lives here in So Cal)
Yeah, 'part.'
Private purchases OK but I gave up on gunchoes (a la Boortz's 'gunched up') when I got tired of extraneous crAP that the vendors have every right to sell. And I wouldn't disarm just to satisfy the NRA-JBTs hoovering around.
And the customers! Sheesh.
I buy my guns from a shop.
Either we are equal or we are not. Good people ought to be armed where they will, with wits and guns. NRA KMA
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