MORE CO-SPONSORS SOUGHT . . . The Bipartisan Sportsmen’s Act (S.2363), NSSF’s top legislative priority, was reintroduced last week to accommodate minor technical corrections with 36 co-sponsors from both sides of the aisle. This is a sign that the bill may come to the Senate floor soon. For hunters and sport shooters this is the most significant package of legislation in a generation. It protects the use of traditional ammunition, allows more flexibility for federal funds to be used to build and maintain ranges on public lands and ensures access to federal lands for hunting, shooting and other outdoor activities. NSSF continues working to build bipartisan support for this bill, but your help is needed. Call your senators at 202-224-3121 and ask them to co-sponsor the bill if they haven’t already done so. Find the list of co-sponsors and call today or as soon as possible.
NSSF Industry Summit
SUMMIT SOLD OUT . . . The 2014 NSSF Industry Summit, slated for June 9-11 in Springfield, Massachusetts, is filled to capacity. Industry members and representatives of groups involved with the entire spectrum of our industry will be taking a critical look at ideas to continue expanding participation in hunting and the shooting sports. More than 200 industry leaders will be attending and contributing to this critical discussion. We look forward to seeing everyone at the Summit in two weeks.
SHOT Show
SHOT SHOW AMONG FASTEST GROWING . . . The SHOT Show has been cited as one of the Top 25 fastest-growing trade shows based on attendance growth by a leading industry trade publication — a recognition that will surprise few who have attended the record-breaking SHOT Shows in Las Vegas in recent years. The high honor announced by the Trade Show News Network (TSNN) places the SHOT Show in elite company with many of the trade show industry’s most recognized names. Our industry’s trade show continues to grow and be recognized with the best and fastest-growing shows in North America, and this honor is shared by all the talented people who work on the show.
Import/Export Conference
REGISTRATION OPEN . . . To help industry members navigate the federal laws and regulations that govern the import and export of firearms and related products, the National Shooting Sports Foundation and the FAIR Trade Group will present our 13th annual Firearms Import/Export Conference on Aug. 5-6 at the Renaissance Washington, D.C., Downtown, 999 Ninth St., NW. This year’s conference features a morning of round-table sessions with key ATF branches, Customs and Border Protection, Treasury’s Tax and Trade Bureau, and Census Bureau’s Automated Export System. The conference will also feature presentations from ATF, an update on the U.N. arms trade control actions, and State Department speakers covering policy updates, enforcement trends, compliance, commercial export policies and brokering licenses, among other topics. Register now for early bird pricing.
Government Relations
NSSF’S KEANE RECOGNIZED AS ONE OF NATION’S TOP LOBBYISTS . . . CEO Update, a Washington, D.C.-based publication written for the executive management of associations and non-profits, has named NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Larry Keane as one of the 2014 top lobbyists for his leadership of the industry’s government relations and advocacy efforts in Washington and the state capitals. According to CEO Update, “Working alone or as part of a coalition, top lobbyists formulate clear policy arguments backed by a consensus of the group’s members, forcefully articulate fundamental points, provide key information to lawmakers, inspire trust in those they seek to influence and never stop fostering the network and contacts arrayed round the playing fields of power.” The publication made note of Keane’s “calm, reasonable voice for an industry often caught in a passionate debate.” Said Keane, “Though I received the recognition I view it as a Team NSSF award.”
HOUSE BILL SUPPORTS EXPORT CONTROL REFORMS . . . The U.S. House of Representatives late last week passed the National Defense Authorization Act. Included in the accompanying report was NSSF requested language expressing support for expeditious progress on the Export Control Reform Initiative regarding firearms and related items that the Administration has stalled for political reasons. The report language also supports a review of the current $1 million Congressional notification threshold for firearms, which adversely affects the ability of American companies to compete in an increasingly global marketplace. Both issues are top NSSF government relations priorities.
LONG-AWAITED MASSACHUSETTS GUN BILL PACKAGE ANNOUNCED . . . Approximately a year and a half in the making, proposed new gun control legislation for consideration by the Massachusetts state legislature was announced today. The bill introduced by House Speaker Robert DeLeo calls for all appropriate records to be sent to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), a measure for which NSSF worked long and hard. There are no new proposed restrictions on firearms features or waiting periods. There are proposed changes to the state’s firearms identification card system. Read a news account.
CALIF. PUBLIC WORKSHOP ON LEAD AMMO BAN IMPLEMENTATION ON JUNE 3 . . . The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has announced the second public workshop to discuss implementation of the state’s traditional lead ammunition ban will be held June 3 in Eureka at the Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center, 921 Waterfront Drive, from 7-8:30 p.m. Last year, Gov. Jerry Brown signed AB 711 requiring the Fish & Game Commission to adopt regulations to ban lead ammunition for hunting no later than July 1, 2015, with full implementation to occur no later than July 1, 2019. Final recommendations to the Fish and Game Commission will be made in September. Additional workshops are being discussed for Redding, Sacramento, Fresno and San Diego. Individuals and organizations also may email comments to wildlifemgmt@wildlife.ca.gov (Use “Non lead implementation” in subject line) or send correspondence to CDFW, Wildlife Branch, Attn: Non lead implementation, 1812 9th St., Sacramento, CA 95811.
For more Government Relations news, read NSSF’s latest Government Relations Update.
NSSF Members
NSSF SELECTS ORCHID ADVISORS AS COMPLIANCE INFORMATION PROVIDER . . . NSSF and Orchid Advisors today announced that both parties have reached agreement for Orchid to become an endorsed compliance information provider. “We are extremely pleased to select Orchid Advisors to help NSSF members receive the information they need to help manage their compliance obligations,” said Stephen L. Sanetti, NSSF president and chief executive officer. Read the NSSF press release.
ATF
MORE ATF QUESTIONS ANSWERED . . . Two new questions from our NSSF Compliance Hotline regarding recovering lost firearms and having a spouse pick up a firearm at your store. Do you know the answers? And more importantly, does your staff? Get the answers to these and other common ATF compliance questions.
Legal
JUDGE IN MICROSTAMPING SUIT TAKES MORE TIME TO WEIGH ISSUES . . . A Fresno, California, Superior Court judge last week heard arguments on the request of NSSF and the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI) for a preliminary injunction to stop temporarily the enforcement of that state’s law requiring new semiautomatic handguns to include microstamping capability. The judge also heard arguments on the state’s motion to dismiss the underlying lawsuit. The court took both matters under advisement after hearing oral arguments from the parties. The judge is now weighing a NSSF and SAAMI request to submit a supplemental brief on the law’s legislative history, which, if granted, would likely include additional oral arguments. We will continue to keep you informed about this case as the process continues.
NSSF FILES FRIEND OF COURT BRIEF IN SUIT AGAINST CONNECTICUT’S ANTI-GUN LAWS . . . NSSF has filed an amicus (friend of the court) brief in Shew v. Malloy, the suit now before the Second Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals filed after the 2013 enactment of Connecticut’s highly restrictive gun control laws. In the brief, NSSF argues, among other things, that industry members are foreclosed from conducting lawful commerce protected by the Second Amendment as the result of an unconstitutional ban on “typically possessed” firearms and magazines. Read the NSSF legal brief.
News of Note
BUSINESSWEEK’S BARRETT ON CALIFORNIA SHOOTINGS . . . The tragedy in Santa Barbara County, California, on Friday in which a mentally disturbed 22-year-old man killed six people and wounded 13 others before apparently committing suicide “…defies sensible-sounding calls for limiting access to weapons and heightening attention to the dangerously deranged,” writes Paul Barrett of BusinessWeek. Read the full article.
NSSF PRESIDENT ON OWAA PANEL . . . At the 87th Outdoor Writers Association of America Conference, held in McAllen, Texas., May 23-25, NSSF President and CEO Steve Sanetti was a member of a “Newsmaker” panel of outdoor industry leaders discussing the state of outdoor recreation in America. He noted the growth in participation in the shooting sports, industry’s leadership role in the area of firearm safety and the importance of Congress passing the Sportsman’s Act. In addition, NSSF sponsored a luncheon at Shooting Day at Lozano Shooting Range and reminded outdoor communicators about its many media resources, such as its Online Newsroom and Media Photo Library. NSSF representatives also participated in “meet the editors” and diversity seminars.
MARK FREEMAN NEW OWAA PRESIDENT . . . Also at the OWAA Conference, Mark Freeman, longtime outdoor columnist and environmental reporter for the Medford (Oregon) Mail-Tribune, received the president’s gavel from outgoing president Bill Graham to become the association’s newest leader. Also at the three-day conference, OWAA honored its Excellence In Craft winners and bestowed other major awards, which the organization will officially announce soon. Learn more at OWAA.org.
PARA USA TEAM’S TOMASIE WINS USPSA TITLE . . . Team Para USA member Travis Tomasie won the United States Practical Shooting Association Area 1 Limited Division Championship at Rattle Snake Mountain Shooting Facility in Benton City, Washington, May 14-18. Tomasie, a former competitor and instructor for the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, competed with a Para Tomasie Custom pistol and Remington UMC ammunition. Read news release.
Jobs
FIREARMS INDUSTRY JOBS . . . Visit www.nssf.org/jobs for current employment opportunities in the shooting, hunting and outdoor industry. Employers: Log in to post a job opening.
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