Received my FOIA results today

[Thompsonlover]

I received my FOIA results today which were submitted in May. My Reising is marked LPD on the top of the receiver. It appears it was transferred tax exempt in 1947. Is it possible it was transferred from the military to another government agency (Police Dept) and thats why it was tax exempt? It was transferred again in 1980, 1981, 1986 (to the man who had it before the guy who sold it to me) then 1999 to the guy who sold it to me then 2020 when I got it.

[Burns556]

Very cool! Thanks for sharing I hope it encourages others to submit a FOIA.

[timkel]

I received my FOIA results today which were submitted in May. My Reising is marked LPD on the top of the receiver. It appears it was transferred tax exempt in 1947. Is it possible it was transferred from the military to another government agency (Police Dept) and thats why it was tax exempt? It was transferred again in 1980, 1981, 1986 (to the man who had it before the guy who sold it to me) then 1999 to the guy who sold it to me then 2020 when I got it. reisinginfo.png

How long did it take to receive a reply?

[Thompsonlover]

It took 5 1/2 months. I received a letter about a month ago saying they received my request and they were working on it.

[Bartlow]

In the year 1947, 26 USC 2721 allowed tax free transfer of NFA firearms to "(1) to the United States Government, any State, Territory, or possession of the United States, or to any political subdivision thereof, or to the District of Columbia; (2) to any peace officer or any Federal officer designated by regulations of the Commissioner; (3) to the transfer of any firearm which is unserviceable and which is transferred as a curiosity or ornament."

https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/uscode/uscode1940-00202/uscode1940-002026025/uscode1940-002026025.pdf

 

So the recipient was probably a government agency, although as noted, police officers could receive the guns tax exempt. The transferor was probably a dealer or H&R itself. The title under the signature is "Secretary-Treasurer." That is a common office in a corporation. I don't see how that could refer to someone authorized to dispose of firearms for the US Military. My guess would be it was bought by an agency from the manufacturer.

 

I would appeal some of the redactions from your FOIA, if I was in your position. Government agencies do not have protection from disclosure of tax returns under 26 USC 6103, because they are not "taxpayers." Further, the name of the manufacturer is not, in my opinion, return information protected from disclosure. So while the transferor on your form is probably entitled to protection from disclosure (since my guess is that it is H&R) the transferee does not (since it is probably a government agency). Further, deleting the name of the manufacturer (line 6) is in my opinion an error. That is not the type of return information that is typically deleted from forms released under FOIA, at least in my experience.

 

ATF does not, to my knowledge, agree that government agencies are not protected by 26 USC 6103. But I think the law is clear, and I am, off and on, engaged in a quixotic fight with them over the issue. I wrote an appeal letter which is in another of my posts which you can feel free to rip off if you want to assist in trying to "stick it to the man."

 

One other fun fact to note from this form. A transferor did not always have to beg for permission before transferring the firearm back then, the way the law works now. Instead the transferor sent it to the transferee, and then reported the transfer after the fact to the Feds. The form is dated July 1947, and says they shipped the gun to the recipient the month before that.

 

If you want to read the 1945 version of the NFA law: https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/uscode/uscode1940-00202/uscode1940-002026025/uscode1940-002026025.pdf

Edited October 29, 2020 by Bartlow

[Thompsonlover]

Thanks for the information Bartlow. I did it for my Thompson and they sent me an additional 9 pages of info unfortunately not much of interest. I'm going to look up your old post. I called them today bringing up your points and they said its tax information. I will send in an appeal.

Edited October 29, 2020 by Thompsonlover