Federal agents are not keeping up with their job of monitoring the flow of guns in Utah, says an agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
The federal agency has only two officers assigned to cover 3,000 gun dealers across the state, many of whom operate out of their homes, says Steve Ott, the ATF's senior agent in Utah.Those same officers spend about half their time inspecting explosive-storage sites kept by many mining companies and ski resorts.
As a result, Ott says, critical inspections and background checks on new gun dealers are not being done. In fact, the agency has never checked dealers for felony records.
"Quick interviews are about all the compliance officers can do," said the Salt Lake-based special agent. "They haven't made inspections a big priority."
Access to guns by juveniles has surfaced as a concern in Utah's battle with gangs. Part of the new Senate crime bill would tighten rules on licensed gun dealers.
A Senate crime bill amendment offered by Sen. Paul Simon, D-Ill., would require that gun dealers comply with local gun laws, submit them to fingerprinting and police photographs when they are licensed, force them to report gun thefts quickly and allow ATF agents to inspect them freely.
"Clearly, this is a key part of the overall anti-crime package," says Susan Whitmore, a spokeswoman for Handgun Control Inc., based in Washington, D.C. "Many people are using our licensing system to skirt gun laws."
Ridiculous, says Tracy Monson, who owns and operates Grizzly Arms Co. out of his Kearns home, selling guns on a by-appointment basis.
"These gangs aren't getting their guns from dealers," Monson said. "They're getting them elsewhere. I've never seen a gang member. I don't even know what a gang member looks like."
Ott says Simon's amendment misses another point: the ease of getting a dealer's license. All it takes is filling out a form and paying a fee.
Ott is calling for a massive increase in the present $30 fee for a three-year gun license, a step Whitmore also supports.
"Thirty dollars is way too low," she said. "It costs more in most states to get a license to set hair."