Gun Dealers Will Soon Be Able to Run Their Own Employees Through NICS Under New Firearm Handler Check Rule
Key Takeaways
- Federal firearms licensees will soon be able to run background checks on their current and prospective employees through the FBI's NICS system.
- The Firearm Handler Check Final Rule will take effect 30 days after its publication in the Federal Register.
- Previously, NICS was used only to run background checks on prospective firearm purchasers, not on gun dealer employees.
- NSSF describes the rule as the result of a long-sought, NSSF-led effort to improve firearm industry and community safety.
- The rule's goal is to ensure no prohibited individuals have access to firearm inventory at licensed premises.
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
WASHINGTON, DC — Federal firearms licensees will soon be able to run their own current and prospective employees through the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), according to NSSF, the firearm industry trade association.
In its announcement, NSSF said the Firearm Handler Check (FHC) Final Rule would be published in the Federal Register the following day, with an effective date 30 days after publication. NSSF said a public inspection version of the rule is already available and that the final rule will not vary from it.
According to NSSF, the rule will “allow all federal firearms licensees (FFLs) to run background check verifications on current and prospective employees” through NICS. Previously, NSSF said, NICS was used only to run background checks on prospective firearm purchasers. NSSF calls the rule the culmination of “a long-sought, NSSF-led effort to improve firearm industry and community safety.”
NSSF said the goal was to ensure no prohibited individuals could have access to firearm inventory at licensed premises. It called the rule’s publication “a tremendous victory for the firearm industry.”
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Nothing in the announcement changes the purchaser check you go through at the counter. The rule is about dealers and the people they put behind it. The customer buying a gun already clears NICS. Soon, the employee handing it over can be checked through the same system.
I will continue tracking the Firearm Handler Check Final Rule as it moves toward its effective date.
Read the original story: Gun Dealers Will Soon Be Able to Run Their Own Employees Through NICS Under New Firearm Handler Check Rule