Sportsmen’s Caucus Continues Support Of FAET Legislation

March 9, 2009 (Washington, DC) - The House leadership of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus sent a letter to colleagues today requesting co-sponsors for H.R 510, which would change the collection schedule of the firearms and ammunition excise tax (FAET).
The bill sponsored by former CSC Co-Chair Rep. Ron Kind would allow the firearms and ammunition industry to pay the firearms excise tax (FAET) on a quarterly basis, the same payment schedule as every other industry supporting conservation. The legislation has been referred to the House Ways and Means Committee.
"The frequency of tax payments for the firearms industry is an undue burden, and switching to a quarterly payment schedule would allow manufacturers to further invest in their business as opposed to securing loans just to pay the bi-weekly tax," said Caucus Co-Chair Rep. Dan Boren.
A broad coalition of sportsmen and conservation groups, including the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, National Shooting Sports Foundation, National Rifle Association, and Safari Club International have made passing this bill to reform the federal excise tax a legislative priority in the 111th Congress.
"Getting together with our fellow sportsmen in making this legislation a priority and getting it passed is a win-win for everyone as we believe correcting this inequity will help the industry grow and just as importantly will help continued funding of major conservation efforts," said CSF President Jeff Crane.
Currently firearms and ammunition manufacturers must pay the FAET bi-weekly. This payment schedule forces many manufacturers to borrow money to ensure on-time payment, and industry members spend thousands of man-hours administering the paperwork to successfully complete the payments -- monies that are due long before manufacturers are paid by their customers. This legislation will not lower the amount of conservation dollars collected by the tax.
Last year the industry marked an important milestone in its longstanding support of wildlife conservation. Manufacturers have since 1991 contributed more than $3 billion dollars to fund wildlife conservation through the payment of the federal excise tax. Since the inception of the excise tax in 1937, more than $5.5 billion dollars has been collected.