FIREARM Act

Summary#

This bill changes federal firearm license rules for people and businesses that sell firearms. It defines a "self-reported violation" as a rule a licensee tells the Attorney General about before an inspection finds it. It narrows the meaning of "willfully" and defines "uncorrectable violation." The bill generally bars the Attorney General from revoking or denying a license based only on a self-reported violation, except when the violation cannot be fixed or when a firearm was transferred to someone legally prohibited from having one. For self-reported violations, the Attorney General must help the licensee correct the problem and offer training. Before starting enforcement, the Attorney General must give detailed written notice and evidence and allow at least 30 business days for the licensee to fix the issue. Corrected violations generally cannot be used later to revoke a license unless the violation involved a prohibited transfer or an uncorrectable violation that creates a direct, acute risk of death or serious injury. The bill also expands judicial review: after an agency hearing, an aggrieved licensee can file in federal district court within 15 business days; the court must stay the revocation while it reviews the case anew and may only uphold a revocation if it finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the licensee willfully violated the law. Finally, the bill applies retroactively to licenses revoked under the ATF's June 23, 2021 Enhanced Regulatory Enforcement Policy, allowing affected licensees to reapply and be approved if they are not otherwise disqualified and show they fixed cited problems.

What it means for you#

• If you hold a federal firearm license, you may be able to report and correct many violations before the government can revoke or deny your license.
• The agency must give you written notice with evidence and at least 30 business days to fix the problem in many cases.
• If your license was revoked under the ATF Enhanced Regulatory Enforcement Policy (June 23, 2021), you may get a chance to reapply and show you fixed past violations, unless you have a disqualifying conviction.
• If your license is revoked or denied after agency review, you can ask a federal district court to review the decision quickly; the revocation is stayed while the court decides.

Expenses#

No publicly available information.

Proponents' View#

The bill's text states its purpose is to give firearm licensees an opportunity to correct statutory and regulatory violations. It requires agency assistance, a notice-and-cure period, training to avoid repeat violations, de novo judicial review with a stay of revocation, and retroactive reapplication rights for certain licensees affected by the ATF's earlier enforcement policy.

Opponents' View#

No publicly available information.