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<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Web Site to Help Check on Gun Buyers
Clinton, Gun Lobby Agree on License Verification System
Sept. 25, 2000
By James Gordon Meek
WASHINGTON (APBnews.com) -- President Clinton this weekend unveiled an Internet tool for federally licensed gun sellers to verify licensed gun buyers, and firearms industry representatives today said they approved of the system.
"FFL eZ Check" is a new feature of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms' Web site that can help sellers instantly check if a buyer's federal firearms license (FFL) is real or counterfeit.
Under federal regulations on the books for years, a dealer who sells a firearm to another dealer must receive a signed copy of the buyer's FFL license. In several recent cases, licenses were doctored or counterfeited to purchase bulk guns illegally.
When an FFL buyer provides the signed copy of a license to the FFL seller, the seller can now log onto the ATF's Web site and type in the buyer's 15-digit identifying number. The ATF online database instantly checks the number. If it's legitimate, the license's expiration date is displayed along with the trade name and mailing addresses.
If any of the information fails to match the paper copy of the FFL provided by the buyer, the seller is encouraged to contact the ATF and report possible fraud, said Special Agent Tracy Hite, an ATF spokeswoman.
Voluntary compliance first
Hite told APBnews.com the Web-based system is voluntary for at least 90 days, and then may be added to the existing regulations after the agency gathers public comment on the proposed rule.
Asked if FFL sellers will actually use the system in the interim, she said only time would tell.
"Our point is to make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for someone to use a fraudulent federal firearms license," she said. "It provides FFLs a level of protection for themselves."
But gun dealers who unknowingly sell weapons to those committing fraud are not generally prosecuted, Hite said.
Licensed gun sellers with questions, or those dealers without Internet access, can call the ATF toll-free at (877) 560-2435 to check on licenses.
'Clearly we must do more'
In his weekly radio address on Saturday, Clinton said the problem of FFL fraud is becoming acute on the Internet, where many licensed dealers are now selling their guns.
"Unfortunately, the Internet, despite all its benefits, is making it easier for guns to fall into the wrong hands," Clinton said. "Clearly we must do more to ensure that every sale over the Internet is legal, and that no one uses the anonymity of cyberspace to evade our nation's gun laws."
Clinton cited recent cases of fraud such as one in which two Montclair, N.J., teens who were arrested this year by authorities after using an altered FFL document to illegally buy four handguns over the Internet.
Industry supports system
Hite said there also have been arrests of several people who once held valid FFLs, but later fixed their expired licenses in order to purchase firearms for criminals.
James Chambers, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation in Alexandria, Va., said the new ATF verification system is a "great idea" created in cooperation with the gun industry.
But he disagreed with Clinton that FFL fraud necessitates increased attention from federal officials.
"It is a potential problem for some innovative criminal to try to get his hands on illegally acquired weapons and firearms," said Chambers, whose group represents firearms manufacturers. "But I don't think it's a rampant problem."
Pat Hopkins, vice president of Green Top Sporting Goods in Ashland, Va., said he was unaware of the new ATF online database, but said he planned to use it to confirm a dealer's authenticity before selling guns to them.
"We might have a dealer who wants us to ship a gun or receive a gun from another dealer in another state, so I do believe that would be an advantage," he said of the FFL eZ Check. "That helps, I'm glad to hear that."
Praise from NRA
When Green Top buys guns from other dealers, Hopkins said he typically blacks out some information on his license to prevent someone from doctoring it.
"It's not foolproof, but it's a whole lot better than what most gun dealers were doing before the advent of this [FFL fraud] problem," he said.
The new Web-based check will help others to verify his license, he said, and help him verify the few dealers he sells to.
In a rare approval of a Clinton administration gun proposal, the National Rifle Association also praised the president's latest move to prevent unlawful firearms sales.
"As far as the NRA is concerned, we think appropriate verification is fine," said NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam.
James Gordon Meek is an APBnews.com editor (james.meek@apbnews.com).
[/quote]
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Web Site to Help Check on Gun Buyers
Clinton, Gun Lobby Agree on License Verification System
Sept. 25, 2000
By James Gordon Meek
WASHINGTON (APBnews.com) -- President Clinton this weekend unveiled an Internet tool for federally licensed gun sellers to verify licensed gun buyers, and firearms industry representatives today said they approved of the system.
"FFL eZ Check" is a new feature of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms' Web site that can help sellers instantly check if a buyer's federal firearms license (FFL) is real or counterfeit.
Under federal regulations on the books for years, a dealer who sells a firearm to another dealer must receive a signed copy of the buyer's FFL license. In several recent cases, licenses were doctored or counterfeited to purchase bulk guns illegally.
When an FFL buyer provides the signed copy of a license to the FFL seller, the seller can now log onto the ATF's Web site and type in the buyer's 15-digit identifying number. The ATF online database instantly checks the number. If it's legitimate, the license's expiration date is displayed along with the trade name and mailing addresses.
If any of the information fails to match the paper copy of the FFL provided by the buyer, the seller is encouraged to contact the ATF and report possible fraud, said Special Agent Tracy Hite, an ATF spokeswoman.
Voluntary compliance first
Hite told APBnews.com the Web-based system is voluntary for at least 90 days, and then may be added to the existing regulations after the agency gathers public comment on the proposed rule.
Asked if FFL sellers will actually use the system in the interim, she said only time would tell.
"Our point is to make it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for someone to use a fraudulent federal firearms license," she said. "It provides FFLs a level of protection for themselves."
But gun dealers who unknowingly sell weapons to those committing fraud are not generally prosecuted, Hite said.
Licensed gun sellers with questions, or those dealers without Internet access, can call the ATF toll-free at (877) 560-2435 to check on licenses.
'Clearly we must do more'
In his weekly radio address on Saturday, Clinton said the problem of FFL fraud is becoming acute on the Internet, where many licensed dealers are now selling their guns.
"Unfortunately, the Internet, despite all its benefits, is making it easier for guns to fall into the wrong hands," Clinton said. "Clearly we must do more to ensure that every sale over the Internet is legal, and that no one uses the anonymity of cyberspace to evade our nation's gun laws."
Clinton cited recent cases of fraud such as one in which two Montclair, N.J., teens who were arrested this year by authorities after using an altered FFL document to illegally buy four handguns over the Internet.
Industry supports system
Hite said there also have been arrests of several people who once held valid FFLs, but later fixed their expired licenses in order to purchase firearms for criminals.
James Chambers, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation in Alexandria, Va., said the new ATF verification system is a "great idea" created in cooperation with the gun industry.
But he disagreed with Clinton that FFL fraud necessitates increased attention from federal officials.
"It is a potential problem for some innovative criminal to try to get his hands on illegally acquired weapons and firearms," said Chambers, whose group represents firearms manufacturers. "But I don't think it's a rampant problem."
Pat Hopkins, vice president of Green Top Sporting Goods in Ashland, Va., said he was unaware of the new ATF online database, but said he planned to use it to confirm a dealer's authenticity before selling guns to them.
"We might have a dealer who wants us to ship a gun or receive a gun from another dealer in another state, so I do believe that would be an advantage," he said of the FFL eZ Check. "That helps, I'm glad to hear that."
Praise from NRA
When Green Top buys guns from other dealers, Hopkins said he typically blacks out some information on his license to prevent someone from doctoring it.
"It's not foolproof, but it's a whole lot better than what most gun dealers were doing before the advent of this [FFL fraud] problem," he said.
The new Web-based check will help others to verify his license, he said, and help him verify the few dealers he sells to.
In a rare approval of a Clinton administration gun proposal, the National Rifle Association also praised the president's latest move to prevent unlawful firearms sales.
"As far as the NRA is concerned, we think appropriate verification is fine," said NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam.
James Gordon Meek is an APBnews.com editor (james.meek@apbnews.com).
[/quote]