Arkansas gun owners react to new ATF regulation to close gun show loophole
LONOKE, Ark. — The Biden administration announced new changes to gun regulations which will soon affect thousands of private sellers of firearms.
The rule update finalized April 11, 2024, requires anyone who sells firearms predominantly to earn a profit to become federally licensed and conduct background checks, regardless of whether they are selling on the internet, at a gun show, or at a brick-and-mortar store.
Justice Department publishes rule to close ‘gun show loophole’
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives will begin enforcing this change in 30 days. It was first proposed in August and received both positive and negative feedback from gun owners, even those in Arkansas.
“That was one thing in the constitution, and it was right there on the top of the list, the second amendment, and that was put in there to keep tyranny from happening from the government,” Rick’s Place Gunsmith owner and operator Rick Breshears said
For decades Breshears has been selling and repairing firearms in Lonoke. He has seen gun regulations strengthen several times, but the most recent rule change by the Biden administration to close the gun show loophole is one he can agree with.
“We do gun shows and we have so many people come up and (they ask) you do paperwork. Yep. Well, I’m not going to buy them from you,” Breshears said.
The updated rule changes the definition of a person “engaged in the business” as a dealer in firearms by looking at the reasons private citizens sell their guns and how often they resell the guns they’ve purchased.
Arkansas lawmakers react to proposed ‘gun show loophole’ closure
It does not, however, set a number for how many gun sales constitute crossing that line. Leaving a question for needs a license to sell and conduct background checks.
“People cannot believe the paperwork that is associated with that, and we have to have all that paperwork available to the ATF. Anytime they want to come in go through it,” Breshears said.
The rule change comes a week after the ATF released new data that shows guns trafficked through unlicensed dealers were used in nearly 370 shootings between 2017 and 2021. In that same period, according to gunviolencearchive.org, there were more than 350,000 shootings.
“This is going to keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and felons,” President Joe Biden said in a statement. “Congress needs to finish the job and pass universal background checks legislation now.”
There are 80,000 federally licensed firearms dealers according to the Biden administration. Federal officials believe the new rule will impact more than 20,000 dealers who sell firearms without a license and do not perform background checks at places like gun shows and over the internet. Breshears believes there are ulterior motives.
“It’s all about them knowing who has guns because they’ll start getting them, I guarantee you,” he said.
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