Trump Administration Rescinds Department of Commerce Rule That Tightened Restrictions on U.S. Gun Exports Abroad, Delivering Gift to Gun Industry and Increasing Likelihood of[...]

NEW YORK - Today, following a deadly weekend of mass violence in the United States from casinos, bars, churches, and more, the Department of Commerce rescinded common sense restrictions on the export of U.S.-made firearms to high-risk non-government purchasers abroad, with the stated intent to be "less burdensome" on the firearms industry.

These restrictions went into effect in 2024 after an extensive review to reduce the risk that firearms are diverted from legal to illegal commerce, and then used to commit crime and fuel violence and terror around the world. The rule gave the Department of Commerce new and improved tools to minimize these serious risks and strengthen U.S. national security. Everytown for Gun Safety released the following statement denouncing the news:

"President Trump's offensive against violent foreign cartels was just undercut by his Administration's decision to make it easier for them to stockpile arms," said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. "Rescinding this rule is a huge giveaway to the gun industry, which is desperate to reopen foreign markets to offset falling U.S. gun sales."

Without proper oversight and controls, U.S.-made guns end up in the hands of foreign terrorists and transnational criminal organizations, and are used to commit human rights violations, stoke political violence, and foment regional instability. The Trump Administration's decision to rescind this rule and loosen these restrictions undermines our nation's national security and foreign policy interests by making it easier for U.S. firearm exports to be diverted to or misused by bad actors abroad.

More on Key Parts of What the Department of Commerce's Rule Did Before the Trump Administration's Reversal:

• Established a presumption of denial for export applications to non-government end-users in 36 high-risk countries identified by the Department of State, in addition to countries with U.S. arms embargoes. The rule also imposed presumptions of denial for certain high-risk transactions to non-government end-users, regardless of destination country.
• Required exporters to include documentation such as purchase orders and passports of recipients in their applications so the Department of Commerce could better evaluate the intended recipients of the weapons, especially in high-risk countries-such as those with high rates or degrees of firearms and drug trafficking, organized crime, human rights abuses, terrorist activity, corruption, and state fragility.
• Formalized an interagency working group headed by the Department of State to review firearms export applications to "evaluate firearm diversion and misuse risks on a country‐by‐country basis." These risks include firearms trafficking, terrorism, human rights concerns, political violence and instability, corruption, organized crime, and drug trafficking.

Reduced the length of firearms export licenses from four years to one to account for rapid developments in destination countries, and to respond to evolving diversion risks and changes in national security and foreign policy interests.