RRLEF Act of 2025
This bill, introduced in the Senate as S. 2863 and titled the Responsible Retirement of Law Enforcement Firearms Act of 2025 (RRLEF Act of 2025), amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to change eligibility criteria for the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (JAG). Under the bill, applicants and all grantees/subgrantees must certify that they will not transfer or purchase firearms from a “covered licensed dealer” identified by the ATF. A dealer is designated as “covered” if, in at least two of the three preceding calendar years, the National Tracing Center traced at least 25 firearms to the dealer with a short time-to-crime (a firearm recovered within three years of its last known retail sale). The bill also requires public disclosure of the covered dealers list and firearms-tracing information, and it repeals certain existing limits on public disclosure of ATF tracing data. In addition to these grant-eligibility provisions, the bill establishes annual reporting by the ATF to notify jurisdictions when firearms traced by the agency are used in crimes and to publish a publicly accessible list of covered dealers. It also repeals several statutory provisions that previously limited public disclosure of ATF tracing information, broadening transparency around firearms provenance.
Key Points
- 1Certification requirement for JAG eligibility: Applicants and all subgrantees must certify they will not transfer or purchase firearms from a covered licensed dealer.
- 2Definition of “covered licensed dealer”: A licensed dealer that, in at least two of the three calendar years before the latest ATF list publication, the National Tracing Center traced to the dealer’s business at least 25 firearms with a short time-to-crime.
- 3Short time-to-crime: Defined as not more than three calendar years between the last known retail sale and a firearm’s recovery by law enforcement in connection with a crime.
- 4Public disclosure and transparency: Within 120 days of enactment (and annually thereafter), the ATF must (1) notify state/local agencies if a firearm traced by the NTC was used or suspected in crime, and (2) publish a list of covered licensed dealers on its website.
- 5Repeals of disclosure limits: The bill repeals several provisions that previously restricted ATF public disclosures of tracing information, broadening access to data about firearms provenance.
- 6Short title and scope: The act is titled the Responsible Retirement of Law Enforcement Firearms Act of 2025 (RRLEF Act), signaling a policy emphasis on retirements/retireable firearms and restricting funding to entities that transact with high-trace dealers.