Gun Owners of America (GOA) and the Gun Owners Foundation (GOF) have taken legal action against the Biden administration, accusing it of implementing a plan to restrict Americans’ access to firearms by exploiting minor bureaucratic errors to force the closure of gun retailers.
The lawsuit, filed in the federal court located in the District of North Dakota, challenges the ATF’s “Zero Tolerance” policy, which targets Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs).
Moreover, it appears that gun retailers who publicly voice their opposition to the Biden administration’s policies are specifically targeted for heightened scrutiny. The administration has already faced criticism from federal courts for instructing tech companies to suppress the voices of private citizens who express differing opinions on government COVID policies.
“Under this new policy, which was put into place by the Biden Administration last year, any errors in recordkeeping by gun dealers would be grounds to immediately initiate license revocation proceedings,” GOA reports.
“This contrasts with previous policy which dictated warnings, corrective action, and then possible license revocation if improvement was not demonstrated,” GOA points out.
GOA and GOF, together with Morehouse Enterprises operating as Bridge City Ordnance in Valley City, North Dakota, have jointly filed a lawsuit. The purpose of the lawsuit is to contest the ATF’s Ghost Gun Frame and Receiver Rule. Recently, the company encountered a peculiar situation when it was unexpectedly raided during the previous summer, shortly after aligning itself with GOA and GOF in the aforementioned legal action.
The reason behind the potential revocation of their Federal Firearms License can be traced back to five minor record keeping infractions. It is important to note that none of these errors led to any illegal firearm sales or the transfer of firearms to individuals who are not legally permitted to possess them.
“This zero tolerance policy towards lawful commerce guaranteed by the Second Amendment is just the latest example of this Administration weaponizing federal agencies against their political enemies. It also is just one more compelling piece of evidence to support gun owners’ demands that Congress defund the ATF,” said Erich Pratt, GOA’s Senior Vice President.
“It’s ridiculous that good people trying to make an honest living are facing this assault on their livelihoods simply over inconsequential paperwork errors. GOF is proud to be lending our support in defense of Bridge City Ordnance and all of those small businesses facing devastating consequences if this Administration’s hostility towards firearms is permitted to go unchecked,” said GOF’s Sam Paredes.