Are You a Felon?...ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) Reinterpreted???

[les.b]

Dear Fellow Forum Members:

I just received an email from one of the West Virgina firearms rights organizations to day, the WVCDL (West Virginia Citizens Defense Leauge). This is an excellent organization, and has performed excellent work here in WV, in promoting 2nd Amendment work. The president, Keith Morgan, made us aware today of a letter from the U. S. State Department which reinterprets the way that ITAR is to be interpreted, and I am going to include a quote from his email, which I think explains the situation pretty well, as well as include a link to the actual State Department letter, (click here for letter) http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?f=001JA6b...H5-Iuax8oTO1QGc4otdPHDH6ajtuteteCNFMkc_I-SA== so that you can read it yourself and see if it may have the effect that it seems to.

I know, some of you are saying "State Department? What would that have to do with me?" ... If you have ever made a gun stock, or improved the accuracy of a firearm, or have an automated reloading press, this may include you.

Here is the quote from the email:

"I apologize in advance for a rare deviation from our "WV only" policy, as we feel it is imperative that we highlight a national issue. We must pass some critical information to WV gun owners, gunsmiths, and manufacturers.

President Obama has over-reached in a way that can, and if left to stand, will have a severe chilling effect on the exercise of our Second Amendment rights. And at present, based on our interpretation of a Department of State guidance letter, many of us may be considered felons as this is typed.

Thus we must make you aware of this condition.

ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) strictly regulates the export of technology that can be used for military purposes. It is broad ranging and covers many things from encryption technology, through weapons systems and training of foreign nationals. The penalty for violating ITAR regulations is severe. It includes a one million dollar fine, and 20 years in prison.

Our interpretation of the guidance letter dated 7/22 (you can click above to read the actual document) is that anyone who drills and taps a scope mount, polishes a trigger, or modifies a firearm in any way that requires tools and improves the firearm's function or accuracy, could be prosecuted as a violation of ITAR."

Well, I'll let the membership chew on this, I don't usually become an alarmist, but many of the things in the letter clearly apply to ordinary home-gunsmithing and hobby activities, and who among us would even know how to register with some international outfit, or the State Department?

I can't but feel that this was designed to have a chilling effect on our exercise of our ordinary second amendment activities, and has no relevance to crime or criminal activities, or international trafficking in "arms".

Please don't hesitate to tell me if I am misinterpreting this letter, or I am overreacting to it, as nothing would make me happier than to find out that I am wrong about this matter!!!

Best Regards, Les

 

[les.b]

Please note that I made some additions and edits to the above post.

Best Regards, Les

 

[Arik]

I would say it's probably a stretch but I guess I don't fall into the felon category since all mine are factory OEM

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[les.b]

Arik:

What worries me is the wording in the State Department letter that says that lots of the everyday things that we do as gun owners make us in violation of the new interpretation of the ITAR. I'm thinking of all the guys on this forum, or just gun hobbyists in general that this could very well sweep up. The real meat of the letter is near the end, and makes clear that you don't have to be "exporting" or have a "FFL", or be engaged in business in order for you to be required to "Register".

This reminds me of the Massachusetts Attorney General's "reinterpretation" of their 20 year old "Assault Weapons" law, where she says that folks who obeyed the law were "using loopholes".

I don't think that we should just think of whether it applies to us right now, but what if you want to make a stock for a rifle one day, do you need to register with the State Department?

Best Regards, Les

 

[weatherby]

This reminds me of the Massachusetts Attorney General's "reinterpretation" of their 20 year old "Assault Weapons" law, where she says that folks who obeyed the law were "using loopholes".

It should Les .....it is only for our own good right ?.....sarcasm.

Something big is brewing

 

[les.b]

Paul:

That is what has me worried, the AG's "Dictate" came out on July 20th, and the State Department letter came out on July 22nd, and a major political event, featuring "Gun Safety" rhetoric started when?

I am far from a conspiracy theorist, but I'm not comfortable with the looks or timing of these events, or what they portend for our future.

Best Regards, Les

 

[weatherby]

Les read this link on where she was just before this happened.

Healey heading to Washington, Israel to talk guns, security | WPRI 12 Eyewitness News

 

[les.b]

Paul:

I checked that out. Hmmmmm.... Also clicked on the link about your rally, and saw that WPRI says that there were "hundreds" of protestors at the rally. Hmmmmm ... I saw the photos and video, looked like "thousands" to me. That is just one more way to try to marginalize anyone who dares to protest peacefully.

I hope that more people read this letter from State. It has huge implications, and needs to be brought out in the open.

Best Regards, Les

 

[Arik]

Ok so after reading a few articles.....this has to do with manufacturers/gunsmiths. Companies that make a living on customizing (no matter how trivial) firearms. This is not about you adding your own scope or handguards. Said companies have to register at the cost of $2250 a year.

NRA-ILA | Just in Time for His Party's Convention, Obama Administration Releases Latest Executive Gun Control


".......The AECA/ITAR require anybody who engages in the business of "manufacturing" a defense article to register with DDTC and pay a registration fee that for new applicants is currently $2,250 per year. These requirements apply, even if the business does not, and does not intend to, export any defense article. Moreover, under ITAR, "only one occasion of manufacturing … a defense article" is necessary for a commercial entity to be considered "engaged in the business" and therefore subject to the regime's requirements."


Don't get me wrong I'm not saying this is good or irrelevant. It's certainly neither but it doesn't effect you as an owner

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[johngalt]

I wonder how this affects reloaders.

 

[loknload]

My take on reading this letter is that this pertains only to Manufacturers and ones that are involved with International Trade. This is International Law?
I do not understand this to be interfering with Joe Bob the gunsmith who repairs grandpas shotgun and mounts the latest scope on your Remington bolt action?

That's my take on it !
Now I'm not a Contract Attorney nor do I play one on television!

 

[PALADIN85020]

Another affront to the 2nd Amendment.

It seems that while everyone was distracted by the conventions, the President signed another executive order that in effect makes most gunsmiths "manufacturers" and would require them to register, fill out forms, make careful records for the government, jump through bureaucratic hoops and pay a yearly $2,500 fee. Even simple operations such as rebarreling or drilling a hole (basic modifications) would make a gunsmith a "manufacturer."

Comments?

John

 

[dave1918a2]

Executive Order or Action? Only the House can establish a Law that requires a Fee or tax. Once again, another illegal action by potus.

 

[PALADIN85020]

Executive Order or Action? Only the House can establish a Law that requires a Fee or tax. Once again, another illegal action by potus.

I believe POTUS believes he can re-define what constitutes a "manufacturer." The law is already in place, this just re-defines a "modifier" to mean "manufacturer." The net effect will be almost certain to put a number of gunsmiths out of business, because they don't want the hassle and/or can't afford the annual fee.

John

 

[Kevin J.]

I have a friend who is a retired Marine Corps armorer. He will not touch anyones firearms, even as a favor because of all the potential bs. Even before this started happening.

 

[Arik]

I have a friend who is a retired Marine Corps armorer. He will not touch anyones firearms, even as a favor because of all the potential bs. Even before this started happening.

Yea there is a lot of weird laws. If you are not a certified gunsmith who's business is gunsmithing then you can't work on my gun unless I'm there with you. At which point you're just helping a friend and teaching. If I leave it there for you that's a big no no

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[rustythread]

The devil's in the details. Re-read that text from the viewpoint of somebody who just bought and added a "+2" magazine base for his 1911 or 5906. How about fitting a .40 conversion kit to your 9mm, or a 9mm upper to a Sig you bought originally in .22.
In the law, ambiguities in a document are construed against the person who drafted the language; in the current climate, exec orders and admin regulations seem more likely to be construed against the citizen.

 

[les.b]

Ok so after reading a few articles.....this has to do with manufacturers/gunsmiths. Companies that make a living on customizing (no matter how trivial) firearms. This is not about you adding your own scope or handguards. Said companies have to register at the cost of $2250 a year.

NRA-ILA | Just in Time for His Party's Convention, Obama Administration Releases Latest Executive Gun Control


".......The AECA/ITAR require anybody who engages in the business of "manufacturing" a defense article to register with DDTC and pay a registration fee that for new applicants is currently $2,250 per year. These requirements apply, even if the business does not, and does not intend to, export any defense article. Moreover, under ITAR, "only one occasion of manufacturing … a defense article" is necessary for a commercial entity to be considered "engaged in the business" and therefore subject to the regime's requirements."


Don't get me wrong I'm not saying this is good or irrelevant. It's certainly neither but it doesn't effect you as an owner

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Arik:

I hope that you are correct in your assessment. The more I read the letter (link above if someone is just joining the conversation), the less I like it. Of course a lot in any of these things depends on the interpretation and intent of the enforcement and prosecutory officials involved in applying the laws, or regulations. As we are seeing in Massachusetts right now, a law which everyone thought they understood and were abiding by, has just been reinterpreted to mean something entirely different. Those who thought they were complying with the law are being accused of using "loopholes".

There are a number of things that make me uneasy about the wording of this document. One is that one only has to perform an action one time to be defined as being a manufacturer. Another is that simple things are defined as being the trigger for registering as a manufacturer and paying the large fee. Making a stock for a gun makes you a manufacturer? What about the folks here on the forum who make handgun stocks or grips? ...Reloading cartridges on a progressive reloader makes you a manufacturer? Really? And the penalties are bizarrely high!!

I am not an alarmist, but this document and the timing of its release, and the current philosophy of the federal authorities all make me uneasy. At the very least, it will have a chilling effect on folks who are actually gunsmiths, and will certainly have a negative effect on anyone who is thinking about helping a buddy with a "gunsmithing" project. Which is perhaps what it is intended to do.

If someone were issuing similar restraints on printing newspapers, or voting, or exercising any other constitutional right, would there be any doubt that the media would be up in arms (so to speak) over the issue......

Best Regards, Les

 

[LDM]

If we get hit with the perfect storm in November -- Hillary in the White House, Dem majorities in the House and Senate, four SCOTUS retirements -- we will effectively see the deaths of the first, second, fourth, fifth, eighth and fourteenth amendments. All legal gun owners who are not politically or socially connected will become felons overnight. As well as anyone who dares to speak out against their tyranny.

 

[ladyT]

Here is some of the rule.
Also an important passage:
(3) Significant military equipment. An asterisk may precede an entry in a U.S. Munitions List category. The asterisk means the enumerated defense article is deemed to be "Significant Military Equipment" to the extent specified in §120.7 of this subchapter. Note that technical data directly related to the manufacture or production of any defense articles enumerated in any category designated as Significant Military Equipment (SME) is also designated as SME.

(e) Classified. For the purpose of this subchapter, "classified" means classified pursuant to Executive Order 13526, or predecessor order, and a security classification guide developed pursuant thereto or equivalent, or to the corresponding classification rules of another government or international organization.
Category I—Firearms, Close Assault Weapons and Combat Shotguns

*(a) Nonautomatic and semi-automatic firearms to caliber .50 inclusive (12.7 mm).

*(b) Fully automatic firearms to .50 caliber inclusive (12.7 mm).

*(c) Firearms or other weapons (e.g. insurgency-counterinsurgency, close assault weapons systems) having a special military application regardless of caliber.

*(d) Combat shotguns. This includes any shotgun with a barrel length less than 18 inches.

*(e) Silencers, mufflers, sound and flash suppressors for the articles in (a) through (d) of this category and their specifically designed, modified or adapted components and parts.

(f) Riflescopes manufactured to military specifications (See category XII(c) for controls on night sighting devices.)

*(g) Barrels, cylinders, receivers (frames) or complete breech mechanisms for the articles in paragraphs (a) through (d) of this category.

(h) Components, parts, accessories and attachments for the articles in paragraphs (a) through (g) of this category.

(i) Technical data (as defined in §120.10 of this subchapter) and defense services (as defined in §120.9 of this subchapter) directly related to the defense articles described in paragraphs (a) through (h) of this category. Technical data directly related to the manufacture or production of any defense articles described elsewhere in this category that are designated as Significant Military Equipment (SME) shall itself be designated SME.

(j) The following interpretations explain and amplify the terms used in this category and throughout this subchapter:

(1) A firearm is a weapon not over .50 caliber (12.7 mm) which is designed to expel a projectile by the action of an explosive or which may be readily converted to do so.

(2) A rifle is a shoulder firearm which can discharge a bullet through a rifled barrel 16 inches or longer.

(3) A carbine is a lightweight shoulder firearm with a barrel under 16 inches in length.

(4) A pistol is a hand-operated firearm having a chamber integral with or permanently aligned with the bore.

(5) A revolver is a hand-operated firearm with a revolving cylinder containing chambers for individual cartridges.

(6) A submachine gun, "machine pistol" or "machine gun" is a firearm originally designed to fire, or capable of being fired, fully automatically by a single pull of the trigger.

Note: This coverage by the U.S. Munitions List in paragraphs (a) through (i) of this category excludes any non-combat shotgun with a barrel length of 18 inches or longer, BB, pellet, and muzzle loading (black powder) firearms. This category does not cover riflescopes and sighting devices that are not manufactured to military specifications. It also excludes accessories and attachments (e.g., belts, slings, after market rubber grips, cleaning kits) for firearms that do not enhance the usefulness, effectiveness, or capabilities of the firearm, components and parts. The Department of Commerce regulates the export of such items. See the Export Administration Regulations (15 CFR parts 730-799). In addition, license exemptions for the items in this category are available in various parts of this subchapter (e.g., §§123.17, 123.18 and 125.4).