I'm getting really tired of repeating this rant. I prolly should just do a sticky, refer folks to it, then lock all of these threads.

The entire NFA branch is now located in W.Va. You can see a complete list of the staffing, by name, in the NFA FAQ here: www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=6&f=17&t=199928

Notice there are eight examiners. And if you've been doing this for awhile, notice that only half those were here a year ago, so it's four veterans and four newbies.

NFA Branch is budgeted for 14 examiners. There are some new hires not on the list yet because they are still in training (by the same names you see above, which means The Eight have even less time to process forms).

NFA Branch must process all the Form 1s and 4s filed by individuals, 2's and 3's filed by SOTs, 10's filed by LE, 5's filed by everyone, .20s filed by non-SOTs, 6's and 9's filed by importer/exporters. They process all the change-in-address or change-in-configuration letters you send in. They handle all LE and estate inquiries about registration status and traces.

Every time Gemtech or AAC cranks out a new can, the NFA Branch examiners process the paperwork. Every time Colt cranks out another 6933 or 6921, NFA Branch examiners register it. Every time your local PD buys a new flash-bang, NFA Branch examiners process the paperwork (yes, every single flash-bang is individually registered). Every time DEA buys a new pallet of MGs, NFA Branch examiners process a Form 5 on each and every MG.

That's hundreds of thousands of Forms each year, all told, that NFA Branch examiners must check and sign. It's tough for 14 examiners, difficult for eight, and when half of the eight are off training new hires....

Yes, there are politics involved. Ken Houchens took over NFA Branch five or six years ago, reformed it, and for awhile it ran well ... then Ken got promoted, and we are back to slow again. It does not help that the present Acting  head of ATF is Michael Sullivan, who openly campaigns against civilian ownership of firearms of any kind.

I talk to the examiners regularly. I find them knowledgeable, helpful ... and overworked.

NFA examiners are not lazy.

Instead, the ones who are lazy are the idiots we keep electing to Congress, who create a political climate where NFA Branch is intentionally understaffed and neglected. Right along with gun-owners who don't take the time and effort to convince people -- voters -- that guns are not evil. That in fact, they today are the tools of personal freedom.

You don't like the system? Complaining here won't fix anything. In fact, it probably warms the hearts of the antigunners.

Quoted: why the two signatures lately at the bottom of the Form ?

Because so many of the examiners are relative newbies, the forms often are being "co-signed" by the specialists (one level higher than examiners). This sometimes is because there may be a technical question, other times it's just a routine audit.

And yes, I've been doing this long enough to remember when a nine-month turnaround was the norm, and six months from pending to approved was cause for celebration and bragging rights!

If our government was truly "for the people," we would have online submission of NFA forms, and turnaround times in days, not weeks. This is what happens when you elect Congressional wolves to be in charge of the administrative henhouse. But again, it's just wrong to blame the examiners.