The America Suppressor Association (ASA) released information from its latest meeting with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) National Firearms Act (NFA) Division. The ATF NFA Division received 53,186 Form 4 applications in June, 19{ebf8267f808eac43d24742043db51eeeb004db6334271e1bb6fe8c21c7925753} lower than the previous month but 63{ebf8267f808eac43d24742043db51eeeb004db6334271e1bb6fe8c21c7925753} higher than June last year, when the ATF NFA Division received 32,646.
Processing times for individual Form 4 applications have increased over previous months, but transfer times are still within the single digits. Trust applications are now averaging under 90 days (about three months). The ATF processed around 70,000 Form 4s last month, showing that the backlog is clearing, which is good news for gun owners.
The processing times for NFA applications fell drastically when the ATF NFA division changed its process to drop the “first in, first out” method. The background check for the responsible person listed on an individual Form 4 is now run by the FBI first instead of after the Form 4 is processed. This change removed the backlog of delayed background checks that slowed the processing of NFA applications.
The bottleneck in the process is currently not ATF but the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Division. Once the ATF receives a Form 4, they submit the responsible person’s information to the FBI NICS division to perform a background check. About 30{ebf8267f808eac43d24742043db51eeeb004db6334271e1bb6fe8c21c7925753} of applicants are delayed by the NICS process. Around 80,000 applications with delayed background checks are outstanding from the FBI NICS division, and the ATF NFA division is stuck waiting for a response. The ATF is working on improvements to give them greater visibility and control over delayed applications.
The NFA Division currently has a 90-person headcount. Of this headcount, there are 15 open positions, six of which are open for examiners. The NFA also added a new branch (Information Compliance Branch) and several new positions, including an Industry Liaison, two new analyst positions, and a new trainer position.
The ATF is making it a priority to move to bulk approval from having to approve every Form 2 and Form 3 individually. This change will eliminate duplicate work and speed up the process for other application types. The ATF also plans to allow multiple firearms to be listed on a single Form 4 application. This change will enable a buyer to purchase multiple NFA items without filling out multiple Form 4 applications. This change will reduce the number of Form 4 applications the ATF must process, which should theoretically decrease NFA wait times across the board.
Another priority is to automate disapproval for “fatal errors.” Fatal errors consist of answering “yes” to a prohibiting question. Currently, those applications must be disapproved manually. The automated system will allow examiners to process other applications without a disqualifying answer. The ATF is also working on improving online status updates. This change should reduce the number of phone calls to the NFA customer service department.
Other improvements to the NFA process, including beta testing systems, depend on budget constraints. The ATF has dumped millions of dollars into losing cases in federal court. Many believe the ATF should be spending money on improving its system to speed up the NFA processing times rather than wasting money on losing battles in the court system.
The changes to the ATF NFA division processes are welcome changes for the suppressor industry, which makes up most NFA applications.
About John Crump
John is an NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. Mr. Crump lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, or at www.crumpy.com.
