Congressman Smith Welcomes Administration Reversal of Backdoor Ban on Bullets

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives yesterday reversed its attempts to ban the M855 "green tip" ammo used by AR-15 owners.

I welcome the ATF’s decision to abandon its backdoor ban on bullets. Their plan would have infringed upon the Second Amendment rights of millions of law-abiding gun owners. I will continue to oppose any and all efforts by this administration to undermine the constitutional freedoms guaranteed to every citizen.

The agency’s reversal comes after 238 other members of Congress and I sent a bipartisan letter of protest to Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Director B. Todd Jones last week. Americans own more than five million AR-15s, which are the most commonly used rifles for sports shooting as well as home protection.

The ammunition used for the AR-15 has been exempted under federal law for sporting purposes for over 30 years, which allows it to be lawfully manufactured, imported, and sold on the civilian market in the United States. But the ATF recently announced a “Framework” with the intention to ban the manufacture and importation of the second-most common ammunition used for the AR-15, the M855 or “green tip.”

In the letter, we wrote that the ATF’s “Framework” “establishes an unduly restrictive standard, does not comport with the letter or spirit of the law, and will interfere with Second Amendment rights by disrupting the market for ammunition that law abiding Americans use for sporting and other legitimate purposes.”

The letter also expressed concern that the agency’s “Framework” was not published in the federal register, which is required when the Executive Branch creates a new rule.

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