📋 Tender Overview
U.S. Senators Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) are among 46 Republican Senators demanding answers regarding a 90-day pause imposed by the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) on the issuance of export licenses for firearms, ammunition, and certain accessories to most overseas markets.
In a letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, the Senators pose a series of questions regarding the immediate pause announced by the DOC Bureau of Industry and Security on October 27, a move seen as the latest chapter in the Biden administration’s hostility toward the U.S. firearms industry. The pause, which includes exceptions for Israel and Ukraine, is expected to have a direct cost of at least $89 million and at least $238 million annually if it is made permanent.
“As you know, firearms exports to non-government users in countries not covered by the exception constitute a significant percentage of overall U.S. firearm exports. This pause puts at stake U.S. commercial and economic interests, as well as those business interests of firearm exporters whose pending exports are now subject to pause, in addition to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests,” the lawmakers wrote Raimondo.
“Finally, we are concerned the unmet demand created by this action will promote opportunities for less scrupulous, professional, or conscientious sources of supply to fill the void, thereby strengthening illicit arms markets,” the letter continued.
The Senators seek a response to their inquiry by no later than November 30.
