PROBLEM: The Tiahrt Amendment severely limits the authority of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to disclose crime gun trace data to the public. It also codifies the Bush Administration policy to destroy certain criminal background check records after only 24 hours. Finally, it bars the ATF from implementing its proposed regulation requiring gun dealers to conduct annual inventory audits to address the problem of guns “disappearing” from gun shops with no record of sales.

THREAT: The Tiahrt Amendment hides from researchers, press, politicians and the public valuable information on crime guns that has been used to identify the sources of illegal guns, as well as to establish the effectiveness of policies to prevent illegal guns. The Tiahrt Amendment makes law enforcement’s job more difficult by requiring background checks to be destroyed in 24 hours and by barring annual inventory audits by gun shops.

URGENCY: Having effective policies to prevent illegal gun trafficking makes our families and communities safer. Repealing the Tiahrt Amendment would untie the hands of law enforcement, as well as give the public vital information needed to craft the most effective policies against illegal guns.

SOLUTION: Congress should repeal the Tiahrt Amendment as soon as possible.

GET ACTIVE: Contact your Representative and Senators to urge them repeal the Tiahrt Amendment.

Q. What is the Tiahrt Amendment and what does it do?

A. The Tiahrt Amendment (named after Congressman Todd Tiahrt of Kansas) has been included in Justice Department appropriations legislation since 2004. There are three main provisions in the Tiahrt Amendment.

One Tiahrt provision severely limits the authority of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to disclose crime gun trace data to the public under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), and bars admissibility of such data when victims bring lawsuits against the gun industry.

The second Tiahrt-sponsored appropriations provision codified the Bush Administration policy destroying certain National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) records after 24 hours.

The third Tiahrt appropriations rider bars ATF from implementing its proposed regulation requiring gun dealers to conduct annual inventory audits to address the problem of guns “disappearing” from gun shops with no record of sale.

Q. Can you tell me more about these provisions and why it should be repealed?

A. Here is some more information on each provision.

Restriction #1: Disclosure of Crime Gun Data

Before the Tiahrt restrictions, ATF had released to the public portions of its trace database – records of the more than two million crime guns ATF has traced from the manufacturer to the first retail purchaser – as well as reports analyzing patterns of crime gun sales (Brady Center, 2006). This data had helped police solve gun crimes and helped illuminate how the illegal gun market is supplied (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, 2002), while any information that was confidential or would jeopardize law enforcement operations was protected from disclosure under FOIA.

Across the country, there has been staunch opposition to the Tiahrt restrictions on crime gun data with more than 230 mayors, dozens of national and state police organizations, and about 200 individual police chiefs and sheriffs urging that they be repealed (Brady Campaign, 2007).

Restriction #2: The 24-hour Brady Record Destruction Requirement

Prior to the Bush Administration, the Department of Justice retained background check records on approved gun sales for 90 days to ensure that the NICS, established pursuant to the Brady Law, was working properly and that criminals were not being mistakenly approved for gun purchases.

The Government Accountability Office estimated that the Bush Administration change could result in hundreds of criminals, terrorists and other prohibited gun buyers being mistakenly approved for gun purchases (Government Accountability Office, 2002).� Without retained NICS records, law enforcement has no opportunity to retrieve guns mistakenly sold to prohibited purchasers. The Justice Department Inspector General also found that the 24-hour destruction policy makes it easier for corrupt dealers “to falsify the NICS check to hide a knowing transfer of a gun to a prohibited person” (Department of Justice, 2004).

Restriction #3: The Prohibition on ATF’s Power to Require Dealer Inventory Audits

The Tiahrt provision that prohibits ATF from requiring annual inventories from dealers only protects corrupt gun dealers who supply criminals. Firearms that dealers claim “disappeared” from their shops are frequently trafficked and prized by criminals because the guns are virtually untraceable. Corrupt gun dealers sometimes attempt to disguise illegal off-the-book sales by claiming that the firearms were lost or stolen (Brady Center, 2008).

A 2008 Brady Center analysis found that in 2007 more than 30,000 guns were “missing” from licensed gun dealers (Brady Center, 2008). Gun dealers who have large numbers of guns “disappear” from their inventory often supply criminals. For example, former gun dealer and National Rifle Association (NRA) Board Member Sandy Abrams, who eventually lost his license after being cited for more than 900 violations of federal gun laws, had 422 guns missing in one inspection, more than one-quarter of his inventory, and his shop had over 483 firearms traced to crimes (Brady Center, 2006).

The Washington, D.C.-area snipers killed 10 people in their 2002 shooting spree using an assault rifle they obtained from Bull’s Eye Shooter Supply of Tacoma, Washington, which “lost” at least 238 guns, including the snipers’ assault rifle, over three years (Seattle Times, 2003).

Q. What can be done about the Tiahrt Amendment and these provisions that hurt law enforcement and communities seeking to stop gun violence?

A. In future appropriations legislation funding the Department of Justice, the provisions in the Tiahrt Amendment should be repealed.

Q. What can I do?

A. Contact your Representative and Senators to urge them repeal the Tiahrt Amendment.