Just for the record: There is no such thing as the "NFA Tech Branch." Instead, there are two separate divisions within BATFE -- the Firearms Technology Branch, which deals with hardware, and the National Firearms Act Branch, which deals with NFA documentation. (There is also the Legal Branch, which interprets firearms law and thus, as NFA owners, we often have to deal with them.) But they are each completely separate.

The NFA Branch, back when it was located in D.C., did indeed shred some incoming applications, but that had nothing to do with the completely separate Tech Branch.

And FWIW -- since I dealt with NFA Branch back then, and knew the players -- not one single employee from those days remains with NFA Branch today. So it's not fair to blame today's staff for something that occurred in a different time, in a different place, and done by different people.

That said:

I've dealt with many current NFA Branch staffers and have always been very impressed by both their professionalism and their obvious willingness to (a) get their job done correctly and quickly, and (b) help NFA owners resolve any issues with applications ASAP. An open, unresolved problem application gathering dust on their desk is as much a bad mark against them as you might feel it is against you.

Yes, upper management at ATF often is politically motivated, and that often equals anti-gun. The staff as NFA Branch is neither, and every single one I've talked to just wants to get each application off their desk as quickly as possible. And "problem status" and rejections mean more time and hassle for them, just as it does for us.

NFA Branch is vastly understaffed, though recent decisions to double the number of Legal Document Examiners should soon start cutting down the backlog.

The system is against us. But the folks who handle our paperwork are not, in my opinion.

Your Mileage May Vary.