SB 2655/HB 2638; Gun Tax Repeal
Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2006 12:39 amThe NRA has found some proposed Tennessee bills it likes. As an EVC I received this information.
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The following is the latest legislative fact sheet regarding SB 2655/HB 2638, directly from our Tennessee State Liaison Darren La Sorte. If you have any questions, please contact Darren directly at (703) 328-3454.
National Rifle Association of America
Fact Sheet
SB 2655/HB 2638; Gun Tax Repeal
PURPOSE
To eliminate the $10 background check fee (tax) that all Tennesseans
must pay when buying a firearm from a gun dealer.
BACKGROUND
Tennessee is currently a "point of contact" state with regard to performing background checks on citizens buying firearms from federal firearm licensees (FFLs). This means that gun dealers call the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) when doing a background check. TBI charges a $10 fee for this service. The FBI performs the same service without assessing a fee. Tennessee's tax payers can get a bigger "bang" for their federal tax dollar by doing what 38 other states do  have gun dealers call directly to the FBI, instead of a state agency, when performing the required background check.
It is inappropriate to tax the exercise of a constitutional right. After all, the Twenty-Forth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution eliminated the poll tax in 1964. As one U.S. Supreme Court Justice once said, "What can be taxed can be prohibited." Because state and federal law require a background check to be performed before citizens can exercise their constitutional right to acquire firearms, Tennesseans are currently paying a $10 tax to exercise their rights. This is wrong. There is a reason the FBI does not assess a fee when performing the required background checks for the citizens in 38 states.
By transferring the background check responsibility from the TBI to the FBI, this tax is eliminated without leaving a state government unit without funding. It is the best of both worlds for the state, its taxpayers and, most importantly, its gun owners.
PROVISIONS
Eliminates all state statutory provisions associated with the required background checks to be performed on Tennesseans buying firearms from gun dealers. This creates a default to federal law which requires FFLs (gun dealers) to perform background checks on all gun purchasers through the FBI. There is no fee (tax) assessed for this service.
***********************************************************
The following is the latest legislative fact sheet regarding SB 2655/HB 2638, directly from our Tennessee State Liaison Darren La Sorte. If you have any questions, please contact Darren directly at (703) 328-3454.
National Rifle Association of America
Fact Sheet
SB 2655/HB 2638; Gun Tax Repeal
PURPOSE
To eliminate the $10 background check fee (tax) that all Tennesseans
must pay when buying a firearm from a gun dealer.
BACKGROUND
Tennessee is currently a "point of contact" state with regard to performing background checks on citizens buying firearms from federal firearm licensees (FFLs). This means that gun dealers call the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) when doing a background check. TBI charges a $10 fee for this service. The FBI performs the same service without assessing a fee. Tennessee's tax payers can get a bigger "bang" for their federal tax dollar by doing what 38 other states do  have gun dealers call directly to the FBI, instead of a state agency, when performing the required background check.
It is inappropriate to tax the exercise of a constitutional right. After all, the Twenty-Forth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution eliminated the poll tax in 1964. As one U.S. Supreme Court Justice once said, "What can be taxed can be prohibited." Because state and federal law require a background check to be performed before citizens can exercise their constitutional right to acquire firearms, Tennesseans are currently paying a $10 tax to exercise their rights. This is wrong. There is a reason the FBI does not assess a fee when performing the required background checks for the citizens in 38 states.
By transferring the background check responsibility from the TBI to the FBI, this tax is eliminated without leaving a state government unit without funding. It is the best of both worlds for the state, its taxpayers and, most importantly, its gun owners.
PROVISIONS
Eliminates all state statutory provisions associated with the required background checks to be performed on Tennesseans buying firearms from gun dealers. This creates a default to federal law which requires FFLs (gun dealers) to perform background checks on all gun purchasers through the FBI. There is no fee (tax) assessed for this service.