{ "id": "IN10801", "type": "CRS Insight", "typeId": "INSIGHTS", "number": "IN10801", "active": false, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 602532, "date": "2017-10-10", "retrieved": "2020-01-02T16:48:28.379971", "title": "Gun Control: \u201cBump-Fire\u201d Stocks", "summary": "Following the October 1, 2017, Las Vegas, NV, attack, there has been significant congressional interest in \u201cbump-fire\u201d stocks that can assist a person in firing a semiautomatic rifle repeatedly, sometimes at rates usually associated with fully automatic machineguns. It has been reported that the assailant in this attack had 12 semiautomatic rifles outfitted with \u201cbump-fire\u201d stocks. The terms \u201cbump-fire\u201d and \u201cslide-fire\u201d are often used interchangeably.\nUnder the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA), a semiautomatic rifle is defined as: \nAny repeating rifle which utilizes a portion of the energy of a firing cartridge to extract the fired cartridge case and chamber the next round, and which requires a separate pull of the trigger to fire each cartridge (18 U.S.C. \u00a7 921(a)(28)). \nSemiautomatic hunting rifles have been available to civilians in the United States since the 1890s.\nUnder the 1934 National Firearms Act (NFA), a machinegun is defined as, among other things, \nAny weapon which shoots, is designed to shoot, or can be readily restored to shoot, automatically more than one shot without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger (26 U.S.C. \u00a7 5845(b)).\nIn 1986, Congress prohibited the possession or transfer of machineguns that were not lawfully possessed before the President signed the bill on May 19, 1986 (18 U.S.C. \u00a7 922(o)).\nATF \u201cBump-Fire\u201d Stock Classifications Through Determination Letters and Rulings\nThe Department of Justice\u2019s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has evaluated and classified an unknown number of \u201cbump-fire\u201d or \u201cslide-fire\u201d stocks through \u201cprivate letter rulings\u201d and at least one published ATF ruling.\nAccording to ATF, private letter rulings are a means to make specific classification decisions about firearms and ammunition. The firearms industry and individuals may submit items to ATF to make determinations for classification (e.g., a \u201cpart,\u201d a \u201cfirearm,\u201d a \u201cmachinegun,\u201d a \u201csilencer,\u201d etc.). These submissions are not required, but are encouraged by ATF to ensure compliance with federal law. ATF makes a classification determination based on the most current laws and regulations at the time of submission and on the results of a physical examination and testing of that specific item. ATF maintains that private letter rulings are proprietary and does not release these letters without written approval from the recipient. \nAs opposed to private letter rulings, ATF also publishes letter rulings signed by the ATF Director. ATF rulings are intended to promote uniform application of the laws and regulations it administers, and these rulings apply retroactively unless otherwise indicated and may be used as precedent. \nIn November 2003 and January 2004, ATF initially determined, through private letter rulings, that a \u201cbump-fire\u201d system, known as the Akins Accelerator, was not regulated as a firearm under either the NFA or GCA in private letter rulings according to an appellant brief submitted in federal court. On December 13, 2006, however, ATF reversed its determinations by publishing a rule, ATF Rul. 2006-2, which reclassified bump-fire systems like the Akins Accelerator as a machinegun, because it was equipped with a \u201ccoiled spring\u201d and initiated automatic fire with a single trigger pull. William Akins, the inventor of the Akins Accelerator, appealed the ATF ruling in federal court. In an unpublished decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit upheld ATF\u2019s decision (see Akins v. United States, 312 F. App\u2019x 197 (11th Cir. 2009)).\nATF Classified Modified Stocks as Unregulated Under Federal Law\nOther manufacturers submitted modified \u201cbump-fire\u201d or \u201cslide-fire\u201d stocks that did not include a \u201ccoiled spring\u201d or similar mechanisms to the ATF for classification. One manufacturer made a private letter ruling dated June 7, 2010, available on the Internet. In this letter, ATF concluded the following:\nThe stock has no automatically functioning mechanical parts or springs and performs no automatic mechanical function when installed. In order to use the installed device, the shooter must apply constant forward pressure with the non-shooting hand and constant rearward pressure with the shooting hand. Accordingly, we find that the \u201cbump-stock\u201d is a firearm part and is not regulated as a firearm under [the] Gun Control Act or the National Firearms Act.\nSemiautomatic Rifle Bump-Fire Technique\nIn an October 1, 2012, edition of Shotgun News, one author described the technique of using a bump-fire stock:\nWhen you wish to bump fire, you shoulder the rifle and it slides to the rear in the stock. Next, when you are aiming at a safe target and are ready to fire, you place your finger inside the trigger guard and rest it against the extension on the left side. Holding your trigger finger in place, you then merely push slightly forward with your left hand, maintaining forward pressure.\nAs you push forward, the rifle slides forward slightly in the stock, the trigger comes in contact with your finger and is depressed firing the rifle. The rifle\u2019s recoil then moves it slightly to the rear in the stock, allowing the trigger to reset before the forward pressure from your left hand slides it back forward, and the cycle repeats. (\u201cSlideFire Stock: The Easy Way to Become a Bump-Fire Bandit,\u201d by David M. Fortier, pp. 26-31.)\nIt is noteworthy that some individuals can achieve bump-firing without a customized stock through trial and error. Nevertheless, these customized stocks arguably assist individuals with bump-firing, allowing them to sustain continuous semiautomatic rifle fire at rates that could not normally be sustained without a greater amount of practice. \nConcluding Observations\nFrom the ATF rulings discussed above, it appears that bump-fire stocks with \u201ccoiled springs\u201d and that initiate automatic fire with a single trigger pull are regulated as firearms under the NFA; however, modified stocks without any \u201cautomatically functioning mechanical parts or springs\u201d are not similarly regulated. Some Members of Congress have called on ATF to reevaluate its bump-fire stock determinations, while other Members have introduced legislation to prohibit such devices (S. 1916, H.R. 3947, and H.R. 3999).", "type": "CRS Insight", "typeId": "INSIGHTS", "active": false, "formats": [ { "format": "HTML", "encoding": "utf-8", "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/IN10801", "sha1": "7d9127a6343e6433eb66477b11620d336419efb3", "filename": "files/20171010_IN10801_7d9127a6343e6433eb66477b11620d336419efb3.html", "images": {} }, { "format": "PDF", "encoding": null, "url": "https://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/IN10801", "sha1": "c913d11072287d3e8deb88b22cd538e53b023c16", "filename": "files/20171010_IN10801_c913d11072287d3e8deb88b22cd538e53b023c16.pdf", "images": {} } ], "topics": [ { "source": "IBCList", "id": 4851, "name": "Firearms Regulation" } ] } ], "topics": [ "CRS Insights" ] }