Pennsylvania Firearm Owners Association
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 17
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Up On The Hill, Pennsylvania
    (Lancaster County)
    Posts
    663
    Rep Power
    21474848

    Default Question about NFA

    Who exactly decides what items do and do not fall under the NFA?

    Is it Congress? Treasury Dept/ATF?

    What's the procedure for adding/removing things?

    Stroke of the pen? Endless argument with hoplophobics in Congress?

    I'm curious about the actual mechanism after listening to the President address NRA.

    TIA

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    Mt. Pleasant
    Posts
    2,437
    Rep Power
    21474851

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    The atf decides if something falls under one of the categories in the nfa there are written descriptions they are supposed to follow but they do what they are told.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Up On The Hill, Pennsylvania
    (Lancaster County)
    Posts
    663
    Rep Power
    21474848

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    So, in theory, the President or Treasury Dept could instruct the BATF to add or delete items without involving Congress, no?

    I'm trying to resolve the President's glad-handing the NRA convention with what power he might have to actually do something if he actually wanted to do so...

    I was sort of hoping there might be some sort of a bureaucratic excuse for how little has actually been done as far as NFA reform.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    bloomsburg, Pennsylvania
    (Columbia County)
    Posts
    1,605
    Rep Power
    21474852

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    The ATF has been transferred from the dept of treasury to the Dept of justice. Because of that the US attorney general now oversees the BATF.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    Mt. Pleasant
    Posts
    2,437
    Rep Power
    21474851

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    Quote Originally Posted by claudel View Post
    So, in theory, the President or Treasury Dept could instruct the BATF to add or delete items without involving Congress, no?

    I'm trying to resolve the President's glad-handing the NRA convention with what power he might have to actually do something if he actually wanted to do so...

    I was sort of hoping there might be some sort of a bureaucratic excuse for how little has actually been done as far as NFA reform.
    Kind of, like making bumpstocks into machineguns, or some 12ga are destructive devices. But they aren't going to be able to remove silencers or sbrs from the nfa without a law change.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Up On The Hill, Pennsylvania
    (Lancaster County)
    Posts
    663
    Rep Power
    21474848

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    Quote Originally Posted by eagleclaw View Post
    The ATF has been transferred from the dept of treasury to the Dept of justice. Because of that the US attorney general now oversees the BATF.
    Thanks.

    I forgot about that.



    Quote Originally Posted by USMC3531 View Post
    Kind of, like making bumpstocks into machineguns, or some 12ga are destructive devices. But they aren't going to be able to remove silencers or sbrs from the nfa without a law change.
    Are you certain about the "law change" part?

    That's the part I'm not getting any solid info about.

    All I've read says that the bureaucrats can add/remove any items without involving Congress.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2014
    Location
    NEPA, Pennsylvania
    (Wyoming County)
    Posts
    2,320
    Rep Power
    21474849

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    Quote Originally Posted by claudel View Post
    Thanks.

    I forgot about that.





    Are you certain about the "law change" part?

    That's the part I'm not getting any solid info about.

    All I've read says that the bureaucrats can add/remove any items without involving Congress.
    Just my opinion without doing a lot of research to back anything up.

    NFA was a legislative act of Congress signed into law in ~1934 which defined the items which were to be controlled by it- Machine guns, silencers, SBR/SBS, AOW are the only categories that I can think of.


    The ATF's only responsibility here is to determine if items fall into one of those categories. They can not add to or remove any of those categories
    "It seems that the Constitution is more or less guidelines than actual rules"
    My feedback: http://forum.pafoa.org/showthread.php?t=305685

  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    Broomall, Pennsylvania
    (Delaware County)
    Posts
    766
    Rep Power
    3592762

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    Quote Originally Posted by ExFlyinguy View Post
    Just my opinion without doing a lot of research to back anything up.

    NFA was a legislative act of Congress signed into law in ~1934 which defined the items which were to be controlled by it- Machine guns, silencers, SBR/SBS, AOW are the only categories that I can think of.


    The ATF's only responsibility here is to determine if items fall into one of those categories. They can not add to or remove any of those categories

    This pretty much sums it up. Add DD, destructive devices and you have it. Keep in mind that a law change removing let's say silencers and machineguns from the NFA would make them illegal in PA and 16 other states. They are actually illegal now but can be possessed due to an exception in our prohibited offensive weapons law.

    Bob D

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    Mt. Pleasant
    Posts
    2,437
    Rep Power
    21474851

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    Quote Originally Posted by claudel View Post
    Thanks.

    I forgot about that.





    Are you certain about the "law change" part?

    That's the part I'm not getting any solid info about.

    All I've read says that the bureaucrats can add/remove any items without involving Congress.
    They can determine if something falls into one of the categories but they cant get rid of the category without a law change is my point.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2012
    Location
    Up On The Hill, Pennsylvania
    (Lancaster County)
    Posts
    663
    Rep Power
    21474848

    Default Re: Question about NFA

    Quote Originally Posted by USMC3531 View Post
    They can determine if something falls into one of the categories but they cant get rid of the category without a law change is my point.
    Makes sense.

    Thanks again

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 7
    Last Post: March 26th, 2018, 07:39 PM
  2. Question about PICS form question 11.C
    By Corsair19955 in forum General
    Replies: 20
    Last Post: March 21st, 2018, 06:36 PM
  3. Act 235 question
    By KungFuBarbeque in forum Pennsylvania
    Replies: 7
    Last Post: February 20th, 2014, 09:38 AM
  4. SBR question
    By vass in forum General
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: December 18th, 2008, 12:11 AM
  5. .45 and 9mm question
    By RJH245 in forum General
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: February 21st, 2008, 10:37 AM

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •