Attorneys general from 18 states call on UPS and FedEx to clarify gun-purchase tracking policies
Jack Birle
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Attorneys general from 18 states are calling on UPS and FedEx to clarify their policies on shipping guns amid concerns about the companies being able to track gun owners without a warrant.
The states are requesting the leaders of two shipping companies to respond within 30 days to their letters expressing concern over new policies they allege allow the companies to “track firearm sales with unprecedented specificity and bypass warrant requirements to share that information with federal agencies.”
NUMBER OF HANDGUN OWNERS CARRYING FIREARM EACH DAY DOUBLES: STUDY
The attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming signed on to the letter, which was sent on Tuesday.
In the letter, the attorneys general claim the companies are requiring those who hold federal firearms licenses to create “separate shipping accounts” for firearms, firearm parts, and other firearm-related products. The attorneys general also allege the new policies allow for the companies to comply with law enforcement and other “governmental authorities” in providing undo access to information on gun owners without a warrant, even if requests from those authorities are inconsistent with current laws, rules, or regulations.
The letter, led by Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen, asks each company several specific questions seeking to clarify if they were pressured to make the changes by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and how much information they share with the agency.
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With the U.S. gun death rate hitting its highest level in nearly three decades, gun policies around the country are being debated by gun rights advocates and gun control advocates.
The Washington Examiner reached out to UPS and FedEx for comment.