During a White House press conference on Monday, President Trump said his administration is a few weeks away from finalizing a bill that will make bump stocks illegal, Reuters reported.
"We're knocking out bump stocks," Trump said. "We're in the final two or three weeks, and I'll be able to write out bump stocks."
Bump stocks were thrown into the limelight after the Las Vegas shooter used the accessory to mimic a fully-automatic firearm.
The Trump administration previously published their proposed "rule change." If approved, they would change the definition of a machine gun under the National Firearms Act (NFA) and bump stocks would be included in that definition.
This was the last known proposal:
The term “machine gun” includes bump-stock-type devices, i.e., devices that allow a semiautomatic firearm to shoot more than one shot with a single pull of the trigger by harnessing the recoil energy of the semiautomatic firearm to which it is affixed so that the trigger resets and continues firing without additional physical manipulation of the trigger by the shooter.
Gun Owners of America (GOA) and the Gun Owners Foundation (GOF) both submitted comments urging the Department of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to keep bump stocks legal.
According to GOA's previous statement, banning bump stocks would be a slippery slope:
If this administration outlaws bump stocks, without regard for the limitations on ATF authority under federal law, it will put into place a slippery slope for future, anti-gun presidents. If ATF chooses to ignore the statutory definition of a machinegun [sic], and instead creates a new definition based on anything that “increases the rate of fire” of a semi-automatic firearm, then far more is at risk than mere bump stocks.
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The National Rifle Association (NRA), on the other hand, is okay with a bump stock ban. Here's a joint statement from NRA Executive Vice President and CEO Wayne LaPierre and NRA-ILA Executive Director Chris Cox:
In the aftermath of the evil and senseless attack in Las Vegas, the American people are looking for answers as to how future tragedies can be prevented. Unfortunately, the first response from some politicians has been to call for more gun control. Banning guns from law-abiding Americans based on the criminal act of a madman will do nothing to prevent future attacks. This is a fact that has been proven time and again in countries across the world. In Las Vegas, reports indicate that certain devices were used to modify the firearms involved. Despite the fact that the Obama administration approved the sale of bump fire stocks on at least two occasions, the National Rifle Association is calling on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) to immediately review whether these devices comply with federal law. The NRA believes that devices designed to allow semi-automatic rifles to function like fully-automatic rifles should be subject to additional regulations. In an increasingly dangerous world, the NRA remains focused on our mission: strengthening Americans' Second Amendment freedom to defend themselves, their families and their communities. To that end, on behalf of our five million members across the country, we urge Congress to pass National Right-to-Carry reciprocity, which will allow law-abiding Americans to defend themselves and their families from acts of violence.
President Trump previously ordered the Department of Justice to to make a regulatory change.
"We are now at the final stages of the procedure," Trump said.
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