Nation sees a sharp drop in gun dealers

Star Tribune ^ | March 22, 2006 | Kevin Diaz

[neverdem]

'Kitchen table' dealers -- those operating out of their homes -- are getting squeezed between federal laws and local zoning codes. The impact on illegal gun-trafficking is debatable.

WASHINGTON -- In a little-noticed victory for gun control advocates in Minnesota and across the nation, the number of gun dealers in the United States has plummeted 78 percent in the past 10 years as tens of thousands of home-based dealers surrendered their federal licenses. The drop shows how the gun debate has moved from a national stage -- where gun control advocates lost congressional battles to ban assault weapons and to sue gun manufacturers -- to local zoning boards that are creating a growing web of fees and regulations that indirectly restrict firearms sales.

"The gun control agenda has evolved from the halls of Congress and the courts," said Andrew Arulanandam, director of public affairs for the National Rifle Association (NRA). "Now we're seeing it evolve to the micro level in local municipalities."

But what looks like welcome news to gun opponents might just have driven gun sales off the books, as fewer personal gun sales are logged, vetted and tracked by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

Whether that has led to more illegal gun trafficking is open to debate.

"Most of these guys [who are no longer licensed] were just home-based dealers who did gun shows on the weekends as a part-time job," said Mark Koscielski, who is fighting a zoning battle to hold on as the last remaining gun store in Minneapolis. "Now they revert to private collectors, so they're free to sell without federal background checks. They're private sales."

Once more numerous than gas stations, people who held the government's most basic gun-dealer license totaled nearly a quarter-million in 1994. Last year, the...

[neverdem]

Panel OKs easing concealed gun rules (DE)

Daniels signs bill on lethal defense (IN)

mms://media.streamtoyou.com/nra/ktvu300k.wmv

http://www.nraila.org/media/video/abcnews.mpg

Those appear to be the URL addresses of videos from the New Orleans gun confiscation, but I don't know how to write the code to link or play them. I found it at the NRA-ILA, here where they can be played.

[freepatriot32]

ping

[freepatriot32]

Libertarian ping.To be added or removed from my ping list freepmail me or post a message here

[William Tell]

From the article: "... the number of gun dealers in the United States has plummeted 78 percent in the past 10 years".

If the government sends jack-booted-thugs to investigate every instance of issuing library cards, the number of libraries will also shrink. If they burn down the buildings and kill all the occupants, they will have even more effect.

[politicket]

Gun sales are way past the point of ridiculous!

I picked up a couple of .22's (from two different stores) a couple of weeks ago and COULD NOT BELIEVE the paperwork required. They made me feel like I was purchasing an atomic bomb and would not let me hold the rifle box until I had been officially escorted to the parking lot!

One of the purchases was at Walmart, the other at Gander Mountain.

I also don't see how the stores can even make a profit on gun sales. The .22 from Walmart cost me $99 and I'm sure that the employee time to do all of the paperwork and jump through all of the hoops more than ate up any profit margin that Walmart should have gotten.

The second amendment (like the rest of the constitution) is just a bunch of words on paper now and has really become meaningless.

[neverdem]

Someone asked me about the New Orleans confiscation videos. I forgot who it was. I would appreciate any help I can get to spread the info.

[kingu]

We stopped selling guns last year. For us it wasn't the laws, it was declining profits that has virtually killed the industry.

[backhoe]

Someone asked me about the New Orleans confiscation videos. I forgot who it was. I would appreciate any help I can get to spread the info.

Click the picture:

I closed my firearms business in 2002, after 19 years of fighting ever-metastatizing costs, fees, laws, regulations, and zoning changes. It just was not worth it.

And article I read in American Firearms Industry ( google it ) in the late 1990's claimed 3 out of 4 FFL businesses closed due to ever-increasing hassles, during Clintoon's corrupt reign.

More taxes, regulation, hassles=less business. Who'd a thunk it?

[Modok]

Looks like Clinton's agenda for gun dealers has been continued by Bush. Guess Bush agrees with Clinton on this one.

[PeteB570]

I had a few friends who had FFLs. None do now because of what's in the article.

Then is a small family gun shop in town that is very friendly. Generally I see something I want in the Shot Gun News and take it down there and point it out. They order it and handle the paperwork for a small fee.

I "reward" that service by giving them the rest of my gun related business.

[muir_redwoods]

"In a little-noticed victory for gun control advocates in Minnesota and across the nation, the number of gun dealers in the United States has plummeted 78 percent in the past 10 years as tens of thousands of home-based dealers surrendered their federal licenses."

So, the ones that survive after their small-time competitors have been thrown out of business will be dealing with more business and higher revenues. Exactly how does the MSM call this a victory for gun-grabbers if the business of selling guns legally suddenly becomes more profitable? Do they somehow think that demand tracks to the numbers of suppliers?

[Woodman]

I've known LEO's who had an FFL just because they were collectors. They gave them up because there was a constant barrage of letters threatening legal action against them because they were "dealers". Because of this they just gave up the licenses. Their situation was really know different than the person who buys and sells too many cars for personal use, but needs to register as a used car dealer. However the used car dealer doesn't get constantly threatened with nationwide class action suits.

[George Smiley]

Sherry Duval, of the St. Paul ATF office, said gun dealers are like any class of sellers. "I'd love to tell you they're all legitimate, just like I'd like to tell you every car dealer is legitimate. Our job is to find the ones who are not."

Duval said the federal gun dealer's license was never intended to be a "personal collector's license."

It's amazing to find someone at BATFE who doesn't know what a C&R license is for.

Or maybe it's not.

[jim_trent]

The numbers really started dropping when Clinton raised the cost of the license tremendously. Now, does everyone know what happens to the dealers records when he "surrenders" his license? They get sent to the BATF. What do you think the BATF is doing with the records of every firearm transaction? Sounds like they had a plan all along, doesn't it.

[Joe Brower]

Not good.

[backhoe]

See my #8.

[Rebelbase]

"The .22 from Walmart cost me $99 and I'm sure that the employee time to do all of the paperwork and jump through all of the hoops more than ate up any profit margin that Walmart should have gotten."

Retail sales force efficiency still escapes WalMart. They're there more to re-stock the shelves with the goods people scatter all over the store.

[absolootezer0]

bah, 90% of those "kitchen table" guys that had their FFL, did 90% of their "business" for self, family and friends and rarely turned a profit. having an FFL allowed you to get the "dealer" discounts, and you could get everything mailed right to you. also, when there's so many more "small time" dealers, the bigger shops have to keep their prices down to compete with mail order shops. now that these dealers are gone, shops can jack up their prices and not worry about mail order, knowing that if you want something from mail-order, you have to goto them, and they can charge you a $25 fee for 5 minutes of work.

[Smokin' Joe]

You get it. This was started under the auspices of folks like Lloyd Bentsen and Janet Reno during the Clinton Administration, for the express purpose of shutting down most gun dealers.

Considering that the same administration was sitting on a database of NICS data over 6 months old which was supposed to have been discarded within 24 hours. There is no doubt in my mind that their intent was to create a registry of firearms and/or owners, and that may continue to this day, albeit illegally.

The yellowsheet data from smaller dealers now defunct contributes greatly, no doubt.

Many others are being pushed out of storefront operations by insurance costs, which is the reason one hardware store in my town no longer has firearms, and they used to have the best selection.

[Wonder Warthog]

"The drop shows how the gun debate has moved from a national stage -- where gun control advocates lost congressional battles to ban assault weapons and to sue gun manufacturers -- to local zoning boards that are creating a growing web of fees and regulations that indirectly restrict firearms sales."

Time for more "state pre-emption" legislation to forbid this kind of BS.