Per my email today - this appears to be substantiated, and it doesn't smell very good:
_____________________________________________
----- Original Message -----
From:
To: <AZRKBA@asu.edu>
Sent: Monday, December 06, 1999 4:29 PM
Subject: Fwd: Official response from Cheaper Than Dirt
> >In response to all the Email Cheaper Than Dirt is getting:
> >
> >My name is Billy J. Brewer. I am the Operations Manager at
> >Cheaper Than Dirt. I have been here almost six years. We
> >currently employ almost 160 good hard working friendly family
> >people. We have Fire Inspections from the Fort Worth Fire
> >Department each and every year. The only items ever written
> >up by the Fort Worth Fire Department have been blown bulbs in
> >Exit Signs and two exit aisles blocked by pallets. There has
> >never been anything said or documented about anything else.
> >On Wednesday, 22 September, 1999 a Lt. John Bolten of the
> >Fort Worth Fire Department showed up at our company and told
> >us he has received a report that we have too much ammo in the
> >building.
> >
> >This date is only seven (7) days after the September 15, 1999
> >tragic shooting at the Wedgewood Baptist Church in Fort Worth.
> >
> >On Thursday, 23 September 1999 Lt. John Bolten of the Fort
> >Worth Fire Department presents Article 77 of the 1997 Uniform
> >Fire Code to Cheaper Than Dirt and states to us that this is
> >what we need to comply with. Within Article 77 there are
> >exceptions. Under Section 7701.1, Exception 4 states "The
> >possession, transportation, storage and use of small arms
> >ammunition when packaged in accordance with DOT packaging
> >requirements". Exception 9 states "When preempted by federal
> >regulations". All our sporting cartridges are DOT packaged
> >and covered under the Code of Federal regulations 49 (CFR 49).
> >Therefore Cheaper Than Dirt should be exempted from Article
> >77 requirements.
> >
> >The Fort Worth Fire Department tells us these exceptions do
> >not apply to us.
> >
> >This is obviously a political issue. The Fort Worth Fire
> >Department has required us to have only 10,000 rounds on
> >display in our Retail Showroom (this would mean any resident
> >within the City of Fort Worth with over 10,000 rounds would
> >be out of compliance and subject to citation) and only
> >90,000 rounds in our spinkler protected warehouse (a total
> >of 100,000 rounds). We sell over 200,000 rounds daily. The
> >100,000 round number is NOT DOCUMENTED within Article 77.
> >It is a number THEY consider safe. The Fort Worth Fire
> >Department is taking Aguila .22 Short cartridges which does
> >not have any smokeless powder in it (we pulled a bullet out
> >of this cartridge and showed it to Lt. John Bolten) and
> >making it fall under the same guidelines as .50cal BMG
> >cartridges.
> >
> >As of this writing we have not found a single other gun/
> >ammunition/sporting store within the City of Fort Worth
> >that has been contacted by the Fort Worth Fire Department
> >for Article 77 compliance.
> >
> >On 23 November 1999 at 0925 hrs Cheaper Than Dirt was served
> >with General Complaint Citation B876326 for violation of
> >Section 7701.7.3 Article 77 UFC-97 by Lt. John Bolten of the
> >Fort Worth Fire Department.
> >
> >I am using this Email Letter to respond in general to the
> >large amount of Emails we are receiving about this issue.
> >I apologize for not having our company respond individually
> >as is our practice. Thank you all for your questions, concerns
> >and letters. Please feel free to spread this Email to all
> >interested and concerned.
> >
> >Merry Christmas and God Bless You..........Billy J. Brewer
>
_____________________________________________
Considering some of the recent flaky regulation changes by FedEx and UPS, as well as the nearly unbridled attacks elsewhere on the RKBA (proposed LA ban on ammo, Orange Co. ban on gun shows, etc., etc.), it is very hard to see any of these things anymore as simply innocent applications of existing law.
Merry Christmas indeed ...
[This message has been edited by Jeff Thomas (edited December 06, 1999).]
