US Gov Burning Ammo

[T.O.M.]

Has any heard the US Goverment has stop the dismataling of old ammo" shelf life expired" and is shipping it to Norway to be burned at a cost to you and me. were in the past it was sold, broken down, bullets ,powder and cases resold as componets is it true

[Quahog]

Nothing would surprise me. I did hear the Govt is supposed to allow once-fired brass to be recirculated but they're not doing it. Ugh!

[Mike1951]

Nothing would surprise me. I did hear the Govt is supposed to allow once-fired brass to be recirculated but they're not doing it. Ugh!

Not much has been said about this last go round. ATK (Speer, Federal, CCI) has been negotiating deals with individual military bases. Under these deals, brass is returned to ATK to be destroyed. This has nothing to do with the government, unlike the bureaucrat mix-up last year.

With the ammo shortage being what it's been, boycotting ATK isn't really practical.

[UpTheIrons]

I thought they had been called out on this (again) and they said (again) that they would stop.

Don't know for sure, though.

[Mike1951]

Yes, ATK claimed they would end the agreements. More details here: http://www.progunleaders.org/ammo/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The following was posted on another mailing list on 4/5/10.

Brass Issue Not Resolved

When I last reported on the ongoing question of the release of once-fired
military brass to the civilian marketplace, it seemed the issue might
finally be resolving itself. Any passing on of that impression seems to have
been either premature or unintentionally erroneous.

Seems the efforts of base commanders to skate around a Congressional order
not to try and sell the brass outside the prescribed process- sales via
auction via Government Liquidations, an outside auction house for government
properties- has been an ongoing process.

As a result, Montana's United States Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester have
sent a very strongly-worded letter to the Department of Defense insisting on
answers to some very pointed questions on the matter of military brass
destruction.

The issue came to light after sales solicitations from ATK (NYSE: ATK) were
disclosed by Montana Shooting Sports Association (MSSA) head Gary Marbut. In
the ATK sales pieces, base commanders were told how they could sell their
once-fired brass to ATK for demilling rather than sending it through the
prescribed governmental process. That sales process would result in the
funds going directly into each base's funds instead of the treasury.

Despite the fact that most military commanders would probably be better
stewards of those funds than Washington, the process is basically a no-no.
When given a clear directive to follow, it's not only unusual for military
officials to fail to comply, it's the equivalent of issuing a throw-down at
Washington.

The most unsettling part of the report, however, was a series of quotes
taken from the ATK program literature being directed to the commanders.

In those materials, several reasons for participating in a direct sale
rather than a government liquidation were quoted. None portrayed potential
civilian purchasers, reloaders or shooters in a very positive light.

Those included:
"We cannot allow this reloaded ammunition to fall into the hands of
militias."

"Keeps Military Grade Brass from being re-loaded by unauthorized users."

"To PREVENT anyone from using your scrap ammunition components for
non-military purposes." (Emphasis in the original)

"Assurability for the [military] installation, that no one can use this
cartridge against law enforcement or our military personnel, by reloading
the case."

Get the idea?

When I contacted ATK President and CEO Mark DeYoung, I received an official
response that described the presentations as "dated", promising they would
be "immediately withdrawn."

"ATK," it concluded, "fully supports the provision passed by Congress last
year to ensure that demilitarized spent brass casings remain available for
civilian use."

Seems, however, that not everyone might have gotten the word. We received
word from reliable sources telling us that the same ATK person who had
issued the now-withdrawn earlier documents had notified some of the bases
participating in the demilled brass project "we are doing the same thing
still, same goal, just different words..."

Even if the whole affair was a misunderstanding, there's a clear directive
issued from Congress to the military that no Congress-appropriated funds may
be used to destroy brass. Here's the excerpt from the 2009 Department of
Defense appropriation by Congress:

"None of the funds available to the Department of Defense may be used to
demilitarize or dispose of M-1 Carbines, M-1 Garand rifles, M-14 rifles, .22
caliber rifles, .30 caliber rifles, or M-1911 pistols, or to demilitarize or
destroy small arms ammunition or ammunition components that are not
otherwise prohibited from commercial sale under Federal law, unless the
small arms ammunition or ammunition components are certified by the
Secretary of the Army or designee as unserviceable or unsafe for further
use."

Even if it's a case of everyone not being informed, it's not sitting well
with the same Montana senators who went to bat for civilians when the whole
ammo demilling issue first surfaced.

The pair has sent a letter to Defense Logistics Agency head Vice Admiral
Alan K. Thompson demanding answers, and setting an April 15 deadline for
receipt of those answers.

After reminding Vice Admiral Thompson the domestic market for ammunition was
"highly sensitive to shortages of spent cartridge cases" they expressed
their concern that "certain installation contracts with private entities for
the sale of once-fired small arms cartridge cases under the QRP (Qualified
Recycling Program) might not be in compliance with this law."

The pair then gave Thompson until April 15 to provide:

-the number and location of military installations that have contracted with
private sources for the sale of their once-fired small arms cartridge cases
under the QRP.,

-An assessment of whether these contracts are in compliance with Section
8019 or PL 1111-1111

-An assessment of whether once-fired small arms cartridge cases sold to
private entities under the QRP earn as much revenue as otherwise would be
earned if the brass were put up for public bid through government
liquidations.

-The steps our agency is taking to ensure that all interested buyers have
the opportunity to purchased once-fired small arms cartridge cases and an
assessment of whether your agency is taking every step to assure the maximum
availablility of once-fired small arms cartridge cases to those who
repurchase them for resale and reuse via the Defense Reutilization and
Marketing Office (DRMO) system."

In other words, the matter of civilian access to once-fired military brass
remains an open issue - at least until April 15. At that point, the
situation may either stabilize or continue to spiral.

We'll keep you posted.