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Gun Owners of America is celebrating what it calls another shot across the bow of the ATF.
Congress and President Trump just signed the latest federal funding bill into law, and tucked inside is a $40 million cut to the ATF’s budget.
It’s not the sweeping rollback some in the House originally pushed for, but GOA says it’s part of a bigger trend: stopping the agency’s growth, and shrinking it where possible.
According to GOA, the ATF’s budget steadily climbed from roughly $1.4 billion in 2019 to about $1.75 billion by 2022. The Biden administration later requested as much as $1.875 billion, putting the agency on track to top $2 billion annually. That didn’t happen.
Instead, GOA points to a historic $122 million cut in 2023. Roughly $200 million below what the administration requested, followed by funding being held around $1.66 billion the next year rather than increased again. With this latest $40 million reduction, GOA argues the tide has clearly shifted.
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The group says the impact goes beyond raw numbers. Federal employee pay raises and inflation mean flat or shrinking budgets force agencies to prioritize. The new funding bill also reportedly directs more ATF resources toward speeding up eForms processing, which GOA says limits manpower available for enforcement initiatives.
GOA frames the cuts as proof that slashing ATF funding doesn’t trigger the crime spike critics warn about. The organization notes that violent crime rates have declined in recent years while ATF funding has remained flat or dropped.
The long-term goal? GOA says this is step one toward abolishing the ATF entirely.
Whether that’s politically realistic remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: after years of steady growth, the ATF’s budget is no longer untouchable. And the gun rights movement is taking a victory lap.
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is a seasoned outdoorsman, lifelong hunter, and the kind of guy who’d rather track whitetails than scroll social media. As an editor for GunsAmerica, he’s got a sharp eye for spotting both solid gear and bad gun laws. Whether he’s deep in the woods or deep in editorial deadlines, Larry brings a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is approach to firearms, hunting, and the great American tradition of self-reliance. If there’s a hot debate on gun rights or the latest in hunting tech, you can bet Larry’s got an opinion—and it’s probably backed up with both facts and field experience.
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– 2A Journalist – Covering firearms legislation, Second Amendment issues, and gun rights for over a decade.
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maybe they will see the light and start doing their jobs like stop the real criminals and not push agendas!!!