Letter to Congress - Firearms Exports (May 14, 2019)
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May 14, 2019
Dear Member of Congress: The undersigned organizations write in strenuous opposition to the Administration’s proposal to significantly weaken regulation and oversight of firearms exports. The transfer of export controls of semi-automatic pistols, assault-style firearms, sniper rifles, and ammunition from the United States Munitions List under the authority of the Department of State to the less-stringent controls of the Department of Commerce[1] will thwart congressional oversight and create new and unacceptable risks of exacerbating gun violence, human rights abuses, and armed conflict. The Administration’s proposal guts Congress’ authority to provide oversight of firearms exports. Currently, Congress is notified of firearms sales authorized by the State Department valued at $1 million or more. No such notification requirements will exist if these weapons are transferred to Commerce control. In recent years, Congressional notification has been an important backstop, helping forestall firearms transfers to repressive forces, such as those in Turkey and the Philippines.[2] The proposal would also transfer control of the technical information and blueprints for potentially undetectable 3D-printed guns from State to Commerce, a move that could facilitate printing of 3D guns worldwide, make these weapons readily available to terrorist groups and other criminal elements, and endanger American embassies, military bases, and passenger aircraft at home and abroad.[3] Although proponents of the proposed changes argue that small arms are “less dangerous” because many can be bought in U.S. retail outlets, the fact is that armies are built from these firearms. Small arms are the weapons of mass destruction in countries and regions such as Congo, Burma, Mexico, and Central America. AR- and AK-type rifles and their ammunition that would be transferred to Commerce control are weapons of choice for criminal organizations in Mexico and other Central American countries, contributing to the humanitarian catastrophe that drives many migrants north as guns flow south.[4] Under the proposed changes, fully automatic firearms would properly remain under State Department control, but semi-automatic weapons would move to the Commerce Department’s control. Practically, however, the difference between these types of weapons is meaningless. For example, soldiers in Cameroon last summer – in two separate incidents captured on video – used semi-automatic rifles to execute several men, two women, and two small children.[5] In Mexico, local police in Guerrero State responsible for the forced disappearance of 43 students in 2014 were armed with semi-automatic rifles.[6] Many sniper rifles and semiautomatic firearms that would be moved to the Commerce Department’s control are currently in active use by the U.S. military, and many semi-automatic firearms can also easily be converted to fully automatic weapons, further illustrating the false dichotomy of arguments in support of this change. The proposal will also increase the risk of exports to unauthorized end users and conflict zones as the Commerce Department, charged with promoting sales, will gather less information about those engaged in the arms trade and rely on post-shipment monitoring, rather than pre-license checks. Overall, Congress already has a robust framework for arms transfers, embedding important human rights and other critical provisions in two central statutes: the Arms Export Control Act and the Foreign Assistance Act. The provisions of these laws, generally speaking, apply to defense articles listed on the U.S. Munitions List. Removing weapons from this list exempts them from related statutory constraints.[7] Ultimately, the weapons and ammunition that currently are controlled under U.S. Munition List Categories I-III belong there and should stay there. The best way to move forward is to prohibit transfer of these weapons out of the U.S. Munitions List and maintain congressional oversight, as is currently proposed in H.R. 1134 and S. 459.[8] A prohibition on transfers out of the U.S. Munitions List could be included in other legislation, such as the National Defense Authorization Act. We urge you to support these measures. Sincerely, Alianza Americas Alliance for Gun Responsibility Alliance of Baptists American Federation of Teachers American Friends Service Committee American Medical Student Association Americans for Democratic Action Amnesty International-USA Arizonans for Gun Safety Arms Control Association Baptist Peace Fellowship of North America BAYAN USA Blue Future Brady The Campaign to Keep Guns off Campus Center for American Progress Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) Center for International Policy Church of the Brethren Office of Peacebuilding and Policy Coalition Against Gun Violence Coalition for Peace Action Coalition to Stop Gun Violence Colorado Ceasefire Legislative Action Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES) Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, US Provinces CT Against Gun Violence Delaware Coalition Against Gun Violence Educational Fund Desert Southwest Conference UMC, Board of Church and Society Episcopal Peace Fellowship Fellowship of Reconciliation Franciscan Action Network Friends Committee on National Legislation Friendship Office of the Americas Georgians for Gun Safety Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence Global Exchange Global Justice Institute, Metropolitan Community Churches Granite State Progress Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart Gun Violence Prevention Center of Utah Hoosiers Concerned About Gun Violence Humanity & Inclusion Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines-United States Jewish Center for Justice Joint Action Committee Jr Newtown Action Alliance Just Foreign Policy Latin America Working Group Leadership Conference of Women Religious Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns Million Hoodies Movement for Justice MomsRising Monmouth Center for World Religions and Ethical Thought National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd National Coalition Against Domestic Violence National Council of Churches National Lawyers Guild, International Committee Network in Solidarity with the People of Guatemala New Mexicans to Prevent Gun Violence Newtown Action Alliance Nicaragua Center for Community Action North Carolina Council of Churches Oakland Catholic Worker One Pulse for America Orange Ribbons for Gun Safety Pax Christi USA Pax Christi International Pax Christi Metro Washington, DC and Baltimore Pax Christi Pacific Northwest Philippines-U.S. Solidarity Organization - Southern California Presbyterian Church (USA) San Diegans for Gun Violence Prevention School of Americas Watch School of Americas Watch - East Bay Sister Parish, Inc. Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities States United to Prevent Gun Violence Stop Handgun Violence Survivors Empowered Action Fund Survivors Lead Task Force on the Americas The United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society United Nations Association of the National Capital Area Violence Policy Center Vision Quilt War Resisters League Washington Office on Latin America WAVE Educational Fund We the People for Sensible Gun Laws Win Without War Women Against Gun Violence Women's Action for New Directions Woman's National Democratic Club Non-US groups: Action on Armed Violence Center for Ecumenical Studies Colombian Campaign To Ban LandMines Corruption Watch UK Human Security Network in Latin American and the Caribbean (SEHLAC) Igarapé Institute Public Policy Association (APP) [1] Department of Commerce, Industry and Security Bureau, "Control of Firearms, Guns, Ammunition and Related Articles the President Determines No Longer Warrant Control Under the United States Munitions List (USML)," Federal Register, May 24, 2018, p. 24181, at: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/05/24/2018-10367/control-of-firearms-guns-ammunition-and-related-articles-the-president-determines-no-longer-warrant; and Government Accountability Office, "EXPORT CONTROLS: State and Commerce Should Share Watch List Information If Proposed Rules to Transfer Firearms Are Finalized," GAO-19307, March 1, 2019, at https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-19-307. [2] Joe Gould, “US lawmakers balk at arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Nigeria,” Defense News, September 26, 2017, at: https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2017/09/26/us-lawmakers-balk-at-arms-sales-to-saudi-arabia-turkey-and-nigeria/. [3] Emily Dreyfuss, “3D Printed Gun Blueprints Are Back, And Only New Laws Can Stop Them,” Wired, August 29, 2018, at: https://www.wired.com/story/3-d-printed-gun-blueprints-return-laws-injunction/. [4] Violence Policy Center, “Cross-Border Gun Trafficking,” at www.vpc.org/indicted; Alex Yablon, “Trump is Sending Guns South as Migrants Flee North,” Foreign Policy, March 8, 2019, at: https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/03/08/trump-guns-honduras-central-america/. [5] Susan Waltz, testimony before House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, March 26, 2019, at: https://www.forumarmstrade.org/uploads/1/9/0/8/19082495/3-26_testimony_waltz.pdf. [6] Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights, Gross Human Rights Violations: The Legal and Illegal Gun Trade in Mexico, 2018, p. 16, at: https://stopusarmstomexico.org/gross-human-rights-abuses-the-legal-and-illegal-gun-trade-to-mexico/. [7] Susan Waltz testimony, op.cit, and Colby Goodman, Christina Arabia, and William Hartung, "Proposed Firearms Export Changes: Key Challenges for U.S. Oversight," Center for International Policy, July 9, 2018, at: https://securityassistance.org/publication/proposed-firearms-export-changes-key-challenges-us-oversight. [8] See legislative texts at: https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/1134 and https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/senate-bill/459/. |
Additional Resources
Resource PageSee resource page with official reports, Congressional action, civil society assessments and responses, media, and other information on the proposed changes.
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