The ATF Transparency Act would require the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) to create an administrative relief process for individuals whose requests to transfer and register a firearm are denied. The bill adds a formal appeals path, requires the ATF to provide users with a National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) transaction number, and allows applicants to submit information to prevent future erroneous denials or delays. It also mandates reimbursement of reasonable attorney fees for successful appeals. In addition, the bill introduces a 90-day clock: if a transfer or making-a-firearm application isn’t decided within 90 days, the application is deemed approved for purposes of processing, unless the application doesn’t meet the required conditions. The act also calls for reports and an agreement between the ATF and the FBI to improve NICS processing, and it defines a timetable for those actions. Overall, the bill aims to increase transparency, speed, and fairness in firearm transfer and make- firearm processes.
Key Points
- 1Administrative relief process for denied firearm transfer applications:
- 2- ATF must give the transferee the relevant NICS transaction number.
- 3- The transferee can appeal the denial to the Secretary in a manner similar to existing CFR appeal procedures.
- 4- The transferee can submit information to reduce erroneous or delayed denials via a program modeled after the Voluntary Appeal File.
- 5Attorney fees for successful appeals:
- 6- If an appeal succeeds, the Secretary must reimburse the transferee for reasonable and necessary attorney fees.
- 7NICS involved in the process:
- 8- The bill defines NICS for purposes of this provision and ties it to the Brady Act background check framework.
- 9Timely processing and deemed approvals:
- 10- If a transfer/registration application isn’t decided within 90 calendar days of filing, it is deemed approved for purposes of processing, and may be acted upon accordingly.
- 11- A similar 90-day deemed-approval rule applies to applications to make and register a firearm.
- 12Effective date:
- 13- The new administrative relief and 90-day deemed-approval rules apply to applications filed or pending on/after enactment.
- 14Reports, MOUs, and NICS administration:
- 15- Within 180 days, the Comptroller General and DOJ Inspector General must report on unresolved NICS checks (2010–2021) and recommendations to minimize unresolved checks.
- 16- Within 180 days, ATF and FBI directors must sign a memorandum of understanding about administering and processing NICS inquiries for firearm transfers.
- 17- Definitions include what counts as a firearm and NICS, aligning with existing statutory definitions.