C O V E R I N G T H E S H O O T I N G B U S I N E S S G L O B A L L Y
A look at Leaper’s new,
precision machined
UTG Accu-Sync Scope
Rings. PAGE 20
Redding Reloading’s
executive vicepresident
Sharpless talks
seating dies. PAGE 44
AMERICA SET FOR
EASIER ROUTE TO
INTERNATIONAL
MARKET
President Trump and his
administration are moving
to allow American gun
manufacturers a cheaper and easier
way of selling products abroad.
Th e anticipated rule, announced
in the Federal Register, would move
control of U.S. fi rearm exports
from the State Department to the
Commerce Department, this would
reduce ‘procedural burdens and costs’
on American gunmakers looking to
expand globally.
It is thought that the plan will
also save the government money by
simplifying the licensing process.
Th is would represent fantastic
news for the American gun industry
and the global industry after sharp
declines in sales since Donald Trump
became President. Th is came after
years of record sales driven by fears
that former President Barack Obama
would tighten gun laws. Th e move
was initially planned back in 2012
but was scrapped after a mass school
shooting in that year.
If the rule change takes eff ect,
foreign arms sales are expected
to increase as much as 20 per
cent, according to the National
Sports Shooting Foundation, the
gun industry’s trade association.
Lawrence Keane, SVP for
Government and Public Aff airs
at the NSSF said the move was “a
signifi cant positive development for
the industry that will allow members
Robin
to reduce costs and compete in the
global marketplace more eff ectively,
while not in any way hindering
national security.”
But the plan has also raised
concerns among foreign policy
specialists and some Democratic
lawmakers who say that the fresh
system could increase gun violence
in other nations by putting more
powerful weaponry in the hands of
human rights abusers and criminal
groups, as well as the civilian
population.
Under the current version of the
Arms Export Control Act, the State
Department issues licenses and
attempts to monitor the fl ow of U.S.
• Continued on page 8
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