This is a proposed rule (not final) that would eliminate the requirement to notify local law enforcement (CLEO) when applying to make or transfer an NFA firearm.
Impact: Moderate and positive—reduces paperwork and administrative burden with little to no impact on enforcement.
Applies to: Primarily individuals, with minor indirect effects on FFLs and NFA trusts/entities.
What this rule means
Right now, when someone applies to:
- Make an NFA firearm (Form 1), or
- Transfer an NFA firearm (Form 4),
They must send a copy of that application to their local Chief Law Enforcement Officer (CLEO).
Important:
- This is NOT approval (that was removed in 2016)
- It is just a notification requirement
ATF is proposing to remove this entirely because:
- CLEOs don’t use the information
- It doesn’t meaningfully help investigations
- ATF already performs its own background checks and legal review
What the rule actually does
If finalized, this rule would:
- Remove CLEO notification requirement
- No more sending:
- Form 1 copies
- Form 4 copies
- Responsible Person Questionnaires (Form 23)
- Eliminates the need to:
- Identify the correct CLEO
- Mail or deliver paperwork
- Update NFA regulations accordingly
- Removes CLEO notification language from:
- 27 CFR 479.62 (making NFA firearms)
- 27 CFR 479.84 (transferring NFA firearms)
- Maintain all core approval requirements
- This does NOT change:
- Background checks
- ATF approval process
- Registration requirements
- ATF still:
- Reviews legality under federal/state/local law
What will change (real-world impact)
For Individuals (Primary Impact):
- Simpler NFA process:
- One less step when filing Form 1 or Form 4
- Saves time and minor cost:
- ATF estimates ~$7 per application in time savings
- Eliminates confusion:
- No need to figure out:
- Who the correct CLEO is
- What to do with the notification
- No need to figure out:
For Trusts / Legal Entities:
- Same benefit applies to:
- Responsible persons (Form 23)
- Reduces administrative burden for multi-person entities
For FFLs / Industry:
- Minor indirect benefit:
- Fewer questions and confusion from customers
- No operational changes
For Law Enforcement (CLEOs):
- Stops receiving large volumes of unused paperwork
- ATF notes:
- CLEOs generally discard these notices anyway
For the system overall:
- Removes a requirement that:
- Costs time and money
- Provides little to no practical benefit
- Estimated savings:
- ~$11.4 million annually across applicants
Key Takeaways
- Eliminates CLEO notification requirement entirely
- Does NOT change approval or background checks
- Reduces paperwork and confusion
- Reflects reality that CLEOs don’t use the information
Proposed Rule to be Posted:
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives
27 CFR part 479
[Docket No. ATF-2026-0004; ATF No. 2025R-15P]
RIN 1140-AA65
Removing CLEO Notification Under the National Firearms Act
AGENCY: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Department of Justice.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.
SUMMARY: The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”) proposes
amending Department of Justice (“Department”) regulations to remove the requirement that a
copy of all applications to make or transfer a firearm subject to the National Firearms Act,
and the specified form for responsible persons, as applicable, be forwarded to the chief law
enforcement officer of the locality in which the applicant/transferee or responsible person is
located.
DATES: Comments must be submitted in writing, and must be submitted on or before (or, if
mailed, must be postmarked on or before) [INSERT DATE 60 DAYS AFTER DATE OF
PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER]. Commenters should be aware that the
federal e-rulemaking portal comment system will not accept comments after midnight
Eastern Time on the last day of the comment period.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by RIN 1140-AA65, by either of the
following methods —
• Federal e-rulemaking portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for
submitting comments.
• Mail: ATF Rulemaking Comments; Mail Stop 6N-518, Office of Regulatory Affairs;
Enforcement Programs and Services; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives;99 New York Ave, NE; Washington, DC 20226; ATTN RIN 1140-AA65.
Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and number (RIN 1140-
AA65) for this notice of proposed rulemaking (“NPRM” or “proposed rule”). ATF may post
all properly completed comments it receives from either of the methods described above,
without change, to the federal e-rulemaking portal, https://www.regulations.gov. This
includes any personally identifying information (“PII”) or business proprietary information
(“PROPIN”) submitted in the body of the comment or as part of a related attachment they
want posted. Commenters who submit through the federal e-rulemaking portal and do not
want any of their PII posted on the internet should omit it from the body of their comment
and in any uploaded attachments that they want posted. If online commenters wish to submit
PII with their comment, they should place it in a separate attachment and mark it at the top
with the marking “CUI//PRVCY.” Commenters who submit through mail should likewise
omit their PII or PROPIN from the body of the comment and provide any such information
on the cover sheet only, marking it at the top as “CUI//PRVCY” for PII, or as
“CUI//PROPIN” for PROPIN. For detailed instructions on submitting comments and
additional information on the rulemaking process, see the “Public Participation” heading of
the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document. In accordance with 5
U.S.C. 553(b)(4), a summary of this rule may be found at https://www.regulations.gov.
Commenters must submit comments by using one of the methods described above, not by
emailing the address set forth in the following paragraph.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of Regulatory Affairs, by email at
ORA@atf.gov, by mail at Office of Regulatory Affairs; Enforcement Programs and Services;
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; 99 New York Ave, NE; Washington,
DC 20226, or by telephone at 202-648-7070 (this is not a toll-free number).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. BackgroundThe Attorney General is responsible for enforcing the provisions of the National
Firearms Act (“NFA”), 26 U.S.C. chapter 53.1 Congress and the Attorney General have
delegated the responsibility for administering and enforcing the NFA to the Director of ATF
(“Director”), subject to the direction of the Attorney General and the Deputy Attorney
General. See 28 U.S.C. 599A(b)(1), (c)(1); 28 CFR 0.130(a)(1)–(2); Treas. Order No.
221(2)(a), (d), 37 FR 11696–97 (June 10, 1972).
2 Accordingly, the Department and ATF
have promulgated regulations to implement the NFA in 27 CFR part 479.
A. Application to make a firearm
Section 5822 of the NFA prohibits any person from making a firearm unless the
person has: (1) filed with the Attorney General a written application, in duplicate, to make
and register the firearm; (2) paid any tax required to make the firearm and affixed the proper
tax stamp to the original application form;3 (3) identified the firearm in the application form
in such manner as prescribed by regulation; (4) identified themself in the application form in
such manner as prescribed by regulation, and that, if such person is an individual, the
identification must include the individual’s fingerprints and photograph; and (5) obtained the
Attorney General’s approval on the form to make and register the firearm. 26 U.S.C. 5822.
Applications must be denied if making or possessing the firearm would place the person
making the firearm in violation of law. For purposes of the NFA, the term “person” means
“an individual, a trust, estate, partnership, association, company or corporation.” 26 U.S.C.
7701(a)(1).
Regulations implementing 26 U.S.C. 5822 are set forth in 27 CFR part 479, subpart
1 Some NFA provisions still refer to the “Secretary of the Treasury.” However, the Homeland Security Act of
2002, Pub. L. 107–296, 116 Stat. 2135, transferred the functions of ATF from the Department of the Treasury to
the Department of Justice, under the general authority of the Attorney General. 26 U.S.C. 7801(a)(2); 28 U.S.C.
599A(c)(1). Thus, for ease of reference, this proposed rule refers to the Attorney General where relevant.
2 In Attorney General Order Number 6353–2025, the Attorney General delegated authority to the Director to
issue regulations pertaining to matters within ATF’s jurisdiction, including under the NFA, Gun Control Act,
and Title XI of the Organized Crime Control Act. ATF’s jurisdiction also includes those portions of sec. 38 of
the Arms Export Control Act pertaining to permanently importing defense articles and services and the
Contraband Cigarette Trafficking Act.
3 Effective January 1, 2026, the tax for making NFA firearms (other than machine guns and destructive devices)
is $0. Pub. L. 119–21, sec. 70436 (July 4, 2025).E. The regulations provide, at 27 CFR 479.62, that no person may make a firearm unless the
person has filed with the Director an ATF 5320.1, Application to Make and Register an NFA
Firearm (“Form 1”), and has received the Director’s approval to make the firearm.
Approving the application also registers the firearm to the applicant in the National Firearms
Registration and Transfer Record (“NFRTR”). Prior to submitting the application to the
Director, all applicants and responsible persons must currently forward a complete copy of
Form 1 or a complete copy of ATF Form 5320.23, NFA Responsible Person Questionnaire
(“Form 23”), respectively, to the chief law enforcement officer (“CLEO”) of the locality in
which the applicant or responsible person is located. The CLEO is defined at 27 CFR
479.62(c) as the local chief of police, county sheriff, head of the state police, or state or local
district attorney or prosecutor.
B. Application to transfer a firearm
Section 5812(a) of the NFA provides that a firearm may not be transferred unless: (1)
the firearm’s transferor has filed a written application, in duplicate, to transfer and register
the firearm to the transferee, using the prescribed application form; (2) the transferor has paid
any tax required, and affixed the proper tax stamp to the original application form;4 (3) the
application form identifies the transferee in such manner as prescribed by regulation, and
that, if such person is an individual, the identification must include the individual’s
fingerprints and photograph; (4) the application form identifies the transferor in such manner
as prescribed by regulation; (5) the application form identifies the firearm in such manner as
prescribed by regulation; and (6) the application form shows that the Attorney General has
approved the transfer and that the firearm has been registered to the transferee. Applications
will be denied if transferring, receiving, or possessing the firearm would place the transferee
in violation of law. 26 U.S.C. 5812(a). Section 5812(b) of the NFA provides that the
4 Effective January 1, 2026, the transfer tax for NFA firearms (other than machine gun and destructive devices)
is $0. Pub. L. 119-21, sec. 70436 (July 4, 2025).transferee may not take possession of the firearm unless the Attorney General has approved
the transfer and registered the firearm to the transferee.
Regulations implementing 26 U.S.C. 5812 are set forth in 27 CFR part 479, subpart
F. In general, § 479.84 provides that no firearm may be transferred in the United States
unless an application, ATF 5320.4, Application to Transfer and Register NFA Firearm (Tax
Paid) (“Form 4”), has been filed and approved by the Director. Prior to submitting the
application to the Director, all transferees and responsible persons must forward a complete
copy of Form 4 or Form 23, respectively, to the CLEO of the locality in which the applicant
or responsible person is located. The CLEO is defined at § 479.84(c) as the local chief of
police, county sheriff, head of the state police, or state or local district attorney or prosecutor.
II. Proposed Rule
Before 2014, ATF required individuals applying to make or transfer a firearm under
the NFA to receive a certification from the CLEO of the jurisdiction in which the applicant
resided. Certifications on Form 1 and Form 4 requested that CLEOs confirm that they had no
information indicating the maker or transferee would use the firearm or device described on
the application for other than lawful purposes and, further, that CLEOs had no information
that receiving or possessing the firearm or device would place the maker or the transferee in
violation of state or local law.5
In 2009, ATF received a petition for rulemaking from the National Firearms Act
Trade and Collectors Association (“NFATCA”) that requested, in part, that ATF eliminate
the required CLEO certification for making and transferring NFA firearms.6 The petitioner
5 See, e.g., ATF Form 1, Application to Make and Register a Firearm, (draft 12-31-13), available at
https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewIC?ref_nbr=201401-1140-001&icID=12720 (last visited April 22,
2026).
6 The term “NFA firearm” means firearms and other weapons to which the NFA applies — specifically,
machine guns, shotguns having a barrel or barrels of less than 18 inches in length, rifles having a barrel or
barrels of less than 16 inches in length, weapons made from a rifle having an overall length of less than 26
inches or a barrel or barrels of less than 16 inches in length or weapons made from a shotgun with an overall
length of less than 26 inches or a barrel or barrels of less than 18 inches in length, silencers, destructive devices,
and any other weapon as defined by the Act. 26 U.S.C. 5845(a).cited the lack of CLEO cooperation as reason for eliminating the requirement. Additionally,
the petitioner asserted that ATF did not accept the CLEO certification as prima facie
evidence that the applicant lawfully possesses the NFA firearm because ATF verifies that the
applicant may lawfully possess an NFA firearm under state and federal law. In response to
this petition, the Department issued an NPRM in 2013 titled, “Machine Guns, Destructive
Devices and Certain Other Firearms; Background Checks for Responsible Persons of a
Corporation, Trust or Other Legal Entity With Respect To Making or Transferring a
Firearm,” to extend NFA requirements, including CLEO certifications, to responsible
persons of legal entities. See 78 FR 55014, 55016–17 (Sept. 9, 2013).
The comments in response to the NPRM echoed the NFATCA petition. See
Machineguns, Destructive Devices and Certain Other Firearms; Background Checks for
Responsible Persons of a Trust or Legal Entity With Respect To Making or Transferring a
Firearm, 81 FR 2658, 2680 (Jan. 15, 2016) (“2016 final rule”). Commenters explained that,
in practice, many applicants struggled to obtain CLEO sign-off. CLEOs would refuse to sign
for a variety of reasons. Some CLEOs feared civil liability should weapons be misused.
Others were ideologically opposed to persons possessing certain weapons. Applicants would
respond by going to different CLEOs in their jurisdiction to find one who would sign.
Alternatively, they would form a trust or legal entity because ATF did not require CLEO
sign-off for trusts and legal entities. But when individuals formed entities, ATF also did not
perform a background check on individuals authorized to possess NFA firearms under the
auspices of the entity.
ATF changed both practices in the 2016 final rule when it required responsible
persons of an entity to submit to a background check and also changed the CLEO
certification requirement to a notice-based system. See 81 FR 2658. Specifically, ATF
changed its regulations to require that applicants forward a copy of their application to a
CLEO in their jurisdiction and to allow CLEOs who had objections to making or transferringa firearm to forward their objections to ATF for review. As part of the change, ATF amended
its regulations to no longer require CLEO consent to approve an application to make or
transfer an NFA firearm. See 27 CFR 479.62, 479.84.
Now, ATF proposes to discontinue this notification practice. ATF has no information
that the CLEO notification meaningfully aids criminal investigations or serves a significant
purpose for local law enforcement. Additionally, ATF does not need the notices for purposes
of approving or disapproving firearm transfers. When the CLEO certification requirement
was first imposed, ATF relied on local law enforcement to help determine whether a person
could lawfully possess NFA firearms. Now, all applicants to make or transfer NFA firearms
are subject to a thorough background check through the National Instant Criminal
Background Check System. ATF makes its own assessment of state and local law to
determine whether specific NFA firearms are lawful in the maker’s or transferee’s
jurisdiction and no longer relies on local law enforcement for that information.
In the 2016 final rule, the Department rejected fully eliminating the CLEO
requirement. The Department wrote that the CLEO notice provided “awareness that a
resident of the CLEO’s jurisdiction has applied to make or obtain an NFA weapon and
affords the CLEO an opportunity to provide input to [ ] ATF of any information that may not
be available during a federal background check indicating that the applicant is prohibited
from possessing firearms.” 81 FR 2682.
In the nearly ten years this system has been in place, it has not worked as intended.
During this time period, ATF is not aware of CLEOs performing independent background
checks or filing objections to making or transferring a firearm. The general feedback to ATF
regarding the CLEO notification has been that law enforcement agencies simply discard
these notices. However, ATF encourages public comments from CLEOs on whether these
notices provide a benefit to them.
These notices are not costless. In the 2016 final rule, ATF estimated that the noticerequirement would cost applicants (individuals and entities) nearly $5.8 million annually. 81
FR 2713. That cost is higher today because of the increase in NFA transfers and inflation. In
section III.A of this preamble, ATF estimates the savings from removing this requirement to
be approximately $11.4 million annually.
There are also no legal impediments to removing the CLEO notice. The CLEO notice
is not in the statutory requirements for applying to make or transfer NFA firearms. This
requirement, instead, has been upheld as an implied power based on ATF’s “broad authority
to promulgate regulations governing application forms.” Lomont v. O’Neill, 285 F.3d 9, 16
(D.C. Cir. 2002). Thus, removing the notification requirement would lessen the burden on
applicants and be consistent with the statutory requirements for approving applications to
make or transfer a firearm.
Accordingly, ATF proposes amending 27 CFR 479.62 and 479.84 to remove the
requirement that a copy of all applications to make or transfer a firearm, and the specified
form for responsible persons, as applicable, be forwarded to the CLEO of the locality in
which the maker, transferee, or responsible person is located.
III. Statutory and Executive Order Review
A. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563
Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review) directs agencies to assess
the costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if regulation is necessary, to
select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits.
Executive Order 13563 (Improving Regulation and Regulatory Review) emphasizes
the importance of agencies quantifying both costs and benefits, reducing costs, harmonizing
rules, and promoting public flexibility.
This proposed rulemaking responds to the inquiries ATF has received regarding the
purpose of the CLEO notification, and further addresses confusion expressed by CLEOs as to
whether their respective law enforcement agency qualifies as the chief law enforcementagency, or whether that agency can be removed as the chief law enforcement agency. The
Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) has determined that this proposed rule would
not be a “significant regulatory action” under Executive Order 12866. Therefore, it did not
review this rule. ATF provides the following analysis to comply with Executive Orders
12866 and 13563.
1. Need statement
CLEO notification may not meaningfully aid criminal investigations or serve a
significant purpose for local law enforcement that outweighs the burdens imposed by the
rule; therefore, this proposed rule would amend 27 CFR part 479 to remove the requirement
to submit a completed NFA application form or responsible person questionnaire to CLEOs,
thereby lessening the burdens on persons who make or transfer such firearms. ATF’s current
understanding is that CLEOs do not make use of these notifications. However, ATF
encourages public comments from CLEOs as to whether receiving such notices provides
benefits to them.
2. Population
ATF maintains a record of applications to make or transfer NFA firearms. Over the
last ten years, the number of NFA applications has increased.7 Table 1 shows the number of
applications by year from 2015 through 2024.
Table 1. Historical number of applications
Year Estimated CLEO
notifications
2015 307,524
2016 548,235
2017 259,147
2018 339,278
2019 370,347
2020 487,745
2021 689,822
2022 764,814
2023 1,061,068
7 National Firearms Act Division, ATF, https://www.atf.gov/firearms/national-firearms-act-division
[https://perma.cc/9TRZ-63BV].2024 1,170,028
ATF determined the average rate of change from one year to the next in Table 1’s
data, then used statistical software to forecast the number of future applications for years
2025 to 2034 applying that same rate of change. Table 2 provides the anticipated increase in
Form 4 applications over the next ten years.
Table 2. Projected number of CLEO notifications
Future years Projected CLEO
notifications
1 1,243,806
2 1,335,050
3 1,426,295
4 1,517,540
5 1,608,785
6 1,700,030
7 1,791,275
8 1,882,519
9 1,973,764
10 2,065,009
3. Benefits and savings
This proposed rule would no longer require individuals to notify CLEOs by
submitting a copy of their NFA applications. ATF anticipates this proposed rule would
primarily affect individuals who make or transfer NFA items for personal use. For purposes
of this analysis, ATF estimates that it would take 15 minutes (0.25 hours) for an individual to
copy the relevant form prior to submitting the original to ATF.
Furthermore, individuals applying to purchase an NFA firearm would likely be doing
so during their leisure time; therefore, ATF estimated a leisure wage rate based on
methodology from the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”), updated to
account for the latest available data.8 The HHS methodology is to first obtain the average
8 https://aspe.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/private/pdf/257746/VOT.pdf.U.S. median non-leisure weekly wage from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (“BLS”), and
divide it by 40 hours to derive the median hourly non-leisure wage. Step two is to obtain the
average U.S. real household income before taxes and after taxes from the Census Bureau,
and divide one by the other to determine the net household income rate. Step three applies
the net income rate to the median non-leisure hourly rate derived in step one, to calculate the
hourly leisure wage. Table 3 shows the steps and data ATF used under this methodology to
determine an updated leisure wage.
Table 3. Calculating leisure wage
Inputs for
leisure wage
rate
Numerical
inputs Source
1a. Median non-
leisure weekly
wage
$1,214
News Release, BLS, Usual Weekly Earnings for Wage and
Salary Workers https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2025/median-
weekly-earnings-were-1076-for-women-1333-for-men-in-
third-quarter-2025.htm
(https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/wkyeng_04162025
.pdf)
1b. Median non-
leisure hourly
wage
$30.35
$1,214 / 40 hours a week = $30.35
2a. Real
household
income pre-tax
$83,730
U.S. Census Bureau, Median Household Income
286.html
2b. Real
household
income post-tax
$72,330
U.S. Census Bureau, Median Household Income
https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%
2F%2Fwww2.census.gov%2Fprograms-
surveys%2Fdemo%2Ftables%2Fp60%2F286%2FtableB1.xlsx
&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK
2c. Net
household
income rate
86 percent $72,330 post-tax income / $83,730 pre-tax income = .86 net
household income rate
3a. Hourly
leisure wage $26.10 $30.35 hourly non-leisure wage * .86 net household income
rate = $26.10 hourly leisure wage
3b. Rounded
hourly leisure
wage
$26
Based on the methodology outlined by HHS, the estimated leisure wage is $26 perhour, which ATF then used to calculate the hourly savings. At 0.25 hours to copy per
application, ATF estimates that this proposed rule would provide a $7 (rounded) hourly time
savings per application.
Table 4. Deregulatory savings over ten years*
Year Undiscounted 3-percent discount 7-percent discount
2025 $8,706,642 $8,453,050 $8,137,049
2026 $9,345,350 $8,808,889 $8,162,591
2027 $9,984,065 $9,136,834 $8,149,971
2028 $10,622,780 $9,438,202 $8,104,068
2029 $11,261,495 $9,714,265 $8,029,290
2030 $11,900,210 $9,966,239 $7,929,612
2031 $12,538,925 $10,195,293 $7,808,612
2032 $13,177,633 $10,402,545 $7,669,502
2033 $13,816,348 $10,589,080 $7,515,178
2034 $14,455,063 $10,755,924 $7,348,221
Total $115,808,511 $97,460,322 $78,854,095
Annualized $11,425,323 $11,227,049
* The “Undiscounted” column represents totals from the underlying costs. Consistent with guidance
provided by OMB in Circular A-4, the “3-percent discount rate” and “7-percent discount rate” columns result
from applying an economic formula to the number in each row of the “Undiscounted” column to show how
these future costs over time would be valued today; they do not contain totals from other tables.
By multiplying the $7 savings by the number of applications by year, ATF anticipates
this proposed rule would have a total, ten-year undiscounted, savings of $115.8 million or
annualized savings of $11.4 million at a 3 percent discount rate and $11.2 million at a 7
percent discount rate.
This NPRM’s proposals would alleviate the burden on individuals and CLEOs from
providing and receiving, respectively, NFA applicant and responsible person notifications.
As stated above, CLEOs are confused about the purpose for the notification requirement and
what they should do with these forms when they receive them. This proposed rulemaking
would remove that confusion in a manner that would not hinder public safety.
B. Executive Order 14192
Executive Order 14192 (Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation) requires an
agency, unless prohibited by law, to identify at least ten existing regulations to be repealed orrevised when the agency publicly proposes for notice-and-comment or otherwise
promulgates a new regulation that qualifies as an Executive Order 14192 regulatory action
(defined in OMB Memorandum M-25-20 as a final significant regulatory action under
section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866 that imposes total costs greater than zero). In
furtherance of this requirement, section 3(c) of Executive Order 14192 requires that any new
incremental costs associated with such new regulations must, to the extent permitted by law,
also be offset by eliminating existing costs associated with at least ten prior regulations.
However, this proposed rule would not be an Executive Order 14192 regulatory action
because it is not a significant regulatory action as defined by Executive Order 12866 and it
would not impose total costs greater than zero. This proposed rule would remove the
previous regulatory requirement to notify CLEOs about applications to make or transfer NFA
firearms and save the public from the costs and burdens of complying with them. ATF
therefore expects this rule, if finalized as proposed, to qualify as an Executive Order 14192
deregulatory action (defined by OMB Memorandum M-25-20 as a final action that imposes
total costs less than zero).
C. Executive Order 14294
Executive Order 14294 (Fighting Overcriminalization in Federal Regulations)
requires agencies promulgating regulations with criminal regulatory offenses potentially
subject to criminal enforcement to explicitly describe the conduct subject to criminal
enforcement, the authorizing statutes, and the mens rea standard applicable to each element
of those offenses. This proposed rule would not create a criminal regulatory offense and is
thus exempt from Executive Order 14294 requirements.
D. Executive Order 13132
This proposed rule would not have substantial direct effects on the states, the
relationship between the federal government and the states, or the distribution of power and
responsibilities among the various levels of government. Therefore, in accordance withsection 6 of Executive Order 13132 (Federalism), the Director has determined that this
proposed rule would not impose substantial direct compliance costs on state and local
governments, preempt state law, or meaningfully implicate federalism. It thus does not
warrant preparing a federalism summary impact statement.
E. Executive Order 12988
This proposed rule meets the applicable standards set forth in sections 3(a) and
3(b)(2) of Executive Order 12988 (Civil Justice Reform).
F. Regulatory Flexibility Act
the Regulatory required Under a regulatory Flexibility Act (“RFA”), 5 U.S.C. 601–612, agencies are
to conduct flexibility analysis of any proposed rule subject to notice-
and-comment rulemaking requirements unless the agency head certifies, including a
statement of the factual basis, that the impact on proposed rule would not have a significant economic
a substantial number of small entities. Small entities include certain small
businesses, small not-for-profit organizations that are independently owned and operated and
are not dominant in their fields, and governmental jurisdictions with populations of less than
50,000.
The Director certifies, after consideration, that this proposed rule would not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. This proposed rule
does not negatively impact small entities; it removes the burden for individuals who currently
have to notify CLEOs when they apply to make or transfer an NFA firearm, and does the
same for responsible persons. Because entities have responsible persons, this rule would
reduce the burden for those persons, and thereby reduce the burden for the entities by
extension. This proposed rule would thus result in a minor indirect benefit to entities from the
time saved by their responsible persons. It does not create costs or burdens and does not
generate a barrier to entry for small businesses.
G. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995This proposed rule does not include a federal mandate that might result in the
expenditure by state, local, and tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector,
of $100 million or more in any one year, and it would not significantly or uniquely affect
small governments. Therefore, ATF has determined that no actions are necessary under the
provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995.
H. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (“PRA”), 44 U.S.C. 3501–3521,
agencies are required to submit to OMB, for review and approval, any information collection
requirements a rule creates or any impacts it has on existing information collections. An
information collection includes any reporting, record-keeping, monitoring, posting, labeling,
or other similar actions an agency requires of the public. See 5 CFR 1320.3(c). This proposed
rule would not create any new information collection requirements, but it would impact three
existing information collections covered under the PRA. As discussed above, this proposed
rule would require ATF to remove the sections of Form 1 (OMB control number 1140-0011),
Form 4 (OMB control number 1140-0014), and Form 23 (OMB control number 1140-0107)
that require applicants to submit a copy of the form to the CLEO and to certify that they have
done so, along with accompanying instructions. ATF anticipates the impacts from this rule
would reduce respondents’ time burden to complete the forms.
Impacted ICR 1:
Title: Application to Make and Register NFA Firearm
OMB control number: 1140-0011
Form number: ATF Form 5320.1 (“Form 1”)
Summary of the information collection: Any person other than a qualified manufacturer who
wishes to make and register an NFA firearm must submit a written application to ATF on a
form prescribed by ATF. 26 U.S.C. 5822. They must also identify the firearm they are
making, themselves as the maker, and, if an individual, must include their fingerprints and aphotograph with the application. In § 479.62, ATF prescribed ATF Form 5320.1 (“Form 1”),
Application to Make and Register NFA Firearm, for these required purposes.
Need for information and proposed use: ATF’s NFA Division uses the information on this
form to determine whether the applicant may legally make and register the firearm under
federal, state, tribal, and local law. Section 5822 provides that ATF cannot approve an
application if making or possessing the firearm would place the person making the firearm in
violation of law. The form asks an individual applicant to respond, under penalties of perjury,
to questions to determine whether they are prohibited by federal law from possessing
firearms. For a trust or legal entity, which cannot answer these questions on the Form 1
because they are not an individual, each responsible person for that trust or legal entity
instead provides this information when they submit Form 5320.23, NFA Responsible Person
Questionnaire (covered by 1140-0107, below).
Description of the respondents affected by this proposed rule: Individuals or households
Number of respondents: 148,975 annually
Frequency of response: once
Response time estimate: 12 minutes (overall reduction from 30 minutes, due to conversion to
eForm, changes proposed in this rule, and other related changes)
Burden of response: 29,795 hours total for all respondents
Impacted ICR 2:
Title: Application to Transfer and Register NFA Firearm (Tax-Paid)
OMB control number: 1140-0014
Form number: ATF Form 5320.4 (“Form 4”)
Summary of the information collection: Persons with an NFA firearm must apply to ATF for
approval to transfer and register the firearm as required by the NFA (26 U.S.C. 5812). ATF
Form 5320.4 (“Form 4”), is the prescribed means for submitting this application, facilitatesand records the firearms transfer, and also serves as proof of registration once approved.
Need for information and proposed use: ATF’s NFA Division uses the information on this
form to determine whether the applicant may legally make and register the firearm under
federal, state, tribal, and local law. The form also identifies the transferor, transferee, and
firearm(s). 26 U.S.C. 5812 provides that ATF cannot approve an application if receiving or
possessing the firearm would place the person receiving the firearm in violation of law. The
form asks an individual transferee to respond, under penalties of perjury, to questions to
determine whether they are prohibited by federal law from possessing firearms. For a trust or
legal entity, which cannot answer these questions on the Form 4 because they are not an
individual, each responsible person for that trust or legal entity instead provides this
information when they submit Form 5320.23, NFA Responsible Person Questionnaire
(covered by 1140-0107, below).
Description of the respondents affected by this proposed rule: Individuals or households
Number of respondents: 546,424 annually
Frequency of response: once
Response time estimate: 12 minutes (overall reduction from 30 minutes, due to conversion to
eForm, changes proposed in this rule, and other related changes)
Burden of response: 109,285 hours total for all respondents
Impacted ICR 3:
Title: NFA Responsible Person Questionnaire
OMB control number: 1140-0107
Form number: ATF Form 5320.23 (“Form 23”)
Summary of the information collection: When a trust or other legal entity (including
corporations, etc.) must submit Form 1 as the maker, or is identified as the transferee on
Form 4 or ATF Form 5320.5 (“Form 5”), Application to Transfer and Register NFA Firearm(Tax-Exempt), they are not able to submit individually identifying information for purposes
of a background check. When one of these forms is filled out by an entity other than an
individual, the entity provides the information on the Forms 1, 4, or 5. In such cases, each
responsible person for that entity must provide the same information that is requested for an
individual on the Form 1, 4, or 5, but provides this information on a separate form. This is to
ensure that each person is legally permitted to make, transfer, or receive an NFA firearm. As
a result, ATF Form 5320.23 (“Form 23”) is required for any responsible person (as defined in
27 CFR 479.11) who is part of such trust or other legal entity.
Need for information and proposed use: ATF’s NFA Division uses the information on this
form to determine whether the applicant may legally make, possess, or receive the firearm
under federal, state, tribal, and local law. Sections 5812 and 5822 provide that ATF cannot
approve an application if making or possessing the firearm would place the person in
violation of law. The form asks the responsible person to respond, under penalties of perjury,
to questions to determine whether they are prohibited by federal law from possessing
firearms.
Description of the respondents affected by this proposed rule: Entity responsible persons
Number of respondents: 749,242 annually
Frequency of response: once
Response time estimate: 12 minutes (overall reduction to 30 minutes, due to conversion to
eForm, changes proposed in this rule, and other related changes)
Burden of response: 149,848 hours total for all respondents
I. Congressional Review Act
This proposed rule would not be a major rule as defined by the Congressional Review
Act, 5 U.S.C. 804.
IV. Public Participation
A. Comments soughtATF requests comments on the proposed rule from all interested persons. ATF
specifically requests comments on the clarity of this proposed rule and how it may be made
easier to understand. ATF also requests comments on the costs or benefits of the proposed
rule and on the appropriate methodology and data for calculating those costs and benefits.
All comments must reference this document’s RIN 1140-AA65 and, if handwritten,
must be legible. If submitting by mail, you must also include your complete first and last
name and contact information. If submitting a comment through the federal e-rulemaking
portal, as described in section IV.C of this preamble, you should carefully review and follow
the website’s instructions on submitting comments. Whether you submit comments online or
by mail, ATF will post them online. If submitting online as an individual, any information
you provide in the online fields for city, state, zip code, and phone will not be publicly
viewable when ATF publishes the comment on https://www.regulations.gov. However, if you
include such personally identifying information (“PII”) in the body of your online comment,
it may be posted and viewable online. Similarly, if you submit a written comment with PII in
the body of the comment, it may be posted and viewable online. Therefore, all commenters
should review section IV.B of this preamble, “Confidentiality,” regarding how to submit PII
if you do not want it published online. ATF may not consider, or respond to, comments that
do not meet these requirements or comments containing excessive profanity. ATF will retain
comments containing excessive profanity as part of this rulemaking’s administrative record
but will not publish such documents on https://www.regulations.gov. ATF will treat all
comments as originals and will not acknowledge receipt of comments. In addition, if ATF
cannot read your comment due to handwriting or technical difficulties and cannot contact
you for clarification, ATF may not be able to consider your comment.
ATF will carefully consider all comments, as appropriate, received on or before the
closing date.
B. ConfidentialityATF will make all comments meeting the requirements of this section, whether
submitted electronically or on paper, and except as provided below, available for public
viewing on the internet through the federal e-rulemaking portal, and subject to the Freedom
of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). Commenters who submit by mail and who do not want
their name or other PII posted on the internet should submit their comments with a separate
cover sheet containing their PII. The separate cover sheet should be marked with
“CUI//PRVCY” at the top to identify it as protected PII under the Privacy Act. Both the
cover sheet and comment must reference this RIN 1140-AA65. For comments submitted by
mail, information contained on the cover sheet will not appear when posted on the internet,
but any PII that appears within the body of a comment will not be redacted by ATF and may
appear on the internet. Similarly, commenters who submit through the federal e-rulemaking
portal and who do not want any of their PII posted on the internet should omit such PII from
the body of their comment and in any uploaded attachments. However, PII entered into the
online fields designated for name, email, and other contact information will not be posted or
viewable online.
A commenter may submit to ATF information identified as proprietary or
confidential business information by mail. To request that ATF handle this information as
controlled unclassified information (“CUI”), the commenter must place any portion of a
comment that is proprietary or confidential business information under law or regulation on
pages separate from the balance of the comment, with each page prominently marked
“CUI//PROPIN” at the top of the page.
ATF will not make proprietary or confidential business information submitted in
compliance with these instructions available when disclosing the comments that it receives,
but will disclose that the commenter provided proprietary or confidential business
information that ATF is holding in a separate file to which the public does not have access. If
ATF receives a request to examine or copy this information, it will treat it as any otherrequest under the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). In addition, ATF will disclose
such proprietary or confidential business information to the extent required by other legal
process.
C. Submitting comments
Submit comments using either of the two methods described below (but do not
submit the same comment multiple times or by more than one method). Hand-delivered
comments will not be accepted.
• Federal e-rulemaking portal: ATF recommends that you submit your comments to
ATF via the federal e-rulemaking portal at https://www.regulations.gov and follow the
instructions. Comments will be posted within a few days of being submitted. However, if
large volumes of comments are being processed simultaneously, your comment may not be
viewable for up to several weeks. Please keep the comment tracking number that is provided
after you have successfully uploaded your comment.
• Mail: Send written comments to the address listed in the ADDRESSES section of this
document. Written comments must appear in minimum 12-point font size, include the
commenter’s first and last name and full mailing address, and may be of any length. See also
section IV.B of this preamble, “Confidentiality.”
Disclosure
Copies of this proposed rule and the comments received in response to it are available
through the federal e-rulemaking portal, at https://www.regulations.gov (search for RIN
1140-AA65).
List of subjects in 27 CFR part 479
Administrative practice and procedure, Arms and munitions, Exports, Imports,
Military personnel, Penalties, Reporting and record-keeping requirements, Seizures and
forfeitures, Taxes, Transportation.
For the reasons discussed in the preamble, ATF proposes to amend 27 CFR part 479as follows:
PART 479—MACHINE GUNS, DESTRUCTIVE DEVICES, AND CERTAIN OTHER
FIREARMS
1. The authority citation for 27 CFR part 479 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 26 U.S.C. 5801–5812; 26 U.S.C. 7801; 26 U.S.C. 7805.
§ 479.62 [Amended]
2. Amend § 479.62 by removing paragraph (c) and redesignating paragraph (d) as paragraph
(c).
§ 479.84 [Amended]
3. Amend § 479.84 by removing paragraph (c) and redesignating paragraph (d) as paragraph
(c).
Robert Cekada,
Director.