WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Department of Government Efficiency has sent staff to the agency that enforces federal gun laws with the goal of revising or eliminating more than 50 rules and gun restrictions by July 4, the Washington Post reported on Friday.
DOGE is working with the general counsel of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to cut the regulations as the Trump administration drastically reduces the number of inspectors, the newspaper reported.
Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. Representatives for DOGE and the Justice Department, which oversees ATF, did not immediately return a request for comment.
The move illustrates a larger shift on gun control promised by the Republican administration of President Donald Trump, who narrowly survived a July assassination attempt by a gunman during the presidential campaign.
An adviser said shortly after that attempt that Trump would safeguard gun rights by appointing federal judges who oppose new firearm limits if he won the election in November.
He signed an executive order in February directing the attorney general to “review all orders, regulations, guidance, plans, and other actions by the Biden Administration regarding firearms” and eliminate infringements on gun rights.
In May, Trump’s administration agreed to permit the sale and possession of devices that let gun enthusiasts convert semiautomatic rifles into weapons that can shoot as fast as machine guns.
Fifteen Democratic-led U.S. states filed a lawsuit on June 9, seeking to block the move.
(Reporting by Nilutpal Timsina in Bengaluru and Doina Chiacu in Washington; Editing by Joe Bavier and Matthew Lewis)
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