By Allan Lengel
ATF revoked gun store licenses at a higher rate in 2022 than in any year since 2006, reports The Trace, citing data published by the agency on October 4.
The crackdown comes after the Biden administration directed ATF to get tougher on gun dealers who are breaking the law.
To date, ATF revoked 92 licenses in 2022, which accounts for roughly 1.3 percent of all the dealers inspected. That’s more than triple the number of licenses revoked in 2021.
“The trendline is good,” former ATF official David Chipman tells The Trace. “I think we have to applaud the agency for holding the industry accountable — for doing its job.”
Chipman works as an advisory board member for the Center for Gun Violence Solutions at Johns Hopkins University. He was nominated by President Biden to head ATF, but was never confirmed due to opposition in the Senate.
