OK, I know you're starting to get Amendment and Email Fatigue, but believe me, it is working, or we wouldn't be here to ask again. You are the ones who have made this happen.Amendment Revising Federal Switchblade Act Introduced, Supported by the Administration. We’re going to ask you to write yet again, because your letters and emails and faxes are WORKING. Let me explain...
While our primary focus had been on stopping funding for Customs relating to their proposed rule, another track was being worked in the background that would permanently solve the problem. It was initially conceived as a follow-up to the urgently required need to stop Customs dead in its tracks, giving us time to work on a more permanent solution. Late Tuesday evening, even as we were marshaling support for the Cornyn-Wyden stop funding amendment, we received an amendment introduced by Senators Pryor (D-AR) and Hatch (R-UT) that would revise the Federal Switchblade Act (FSA); an amendment that was being supported by Customs.
It was a good start, but was not quite acceptable for a variety of reasons. Knife Rights led an effort to "perfect" the language of the amendment. Working with our attorneys and AKTI representatives late into the night and early morning hours, Knife Rights drafted language that we felt would permanently solve the issue. With the cooperation of AKTI and NRA lobbyists this revised language was handed off to Sen. Pryor who worked to get Customs to accept the revised language. After a concerted effort by Sen. Pryor, a consensus revision emerged that had the support of Customs and was acceptable to Knife Rights and the industry. Late today a new Amendment Number 1447 was introduced by Senators Cornyn, Pryor, Hatch, Vitter, Risch, Chambliss, Corker, Enzi, Barrasso, Graham, Roberts, Wyden and Crapo that adds another Exception in Section 1244 that clearly covers conventional assisted openers and one-hand openers. It's not perfect, but it's good enough and a major step forward. Even better, it is a permanent solution rather than a stop-gap measure.
View the amendment here:
http://www.KnifeRights.org/SAmdt%201447.pdf This cooperative effort has resulted in a bi-partisan amendment that has the critical support from the Senate committees which have responsibility for the FSA and which is endorsed by the Administration (Customs and Border Production have signed off on it). That gives it a very good chance of making it through the process,
but first we have to get it voted into the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill.
NONE of this would have occurred without the groundswell of negative reaction to the Customs proposal. Your thousands of written letters mailed to Customs and the thousands more emails and faxes sent to Members of Congress asking them to stop Customs, are what raised the issue to a level where it could no longer be ignored. As the efforts by Knife Rights and AKTI garnered more support from others with more political pull, that led to the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus' letter to Sec. Napolitano. It all added up to a great deal of pressure on Customs to fix the problem. Customs has responded, to their credit.
The coalition of advocacy groups including Knife Rights, American Knife and Tool Institute, National Rifle Association, Congressional Sportsmen Foundation, Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and others
were able to leverage YOUR outrage into an effective political force in a very short time. None of us individually could have done it alone and it would not have happened without the grassroots support you have provided. You deserve to pat yourself on the back for this effort to get it this far. In an age when we often feel like Congress and the Administration simply ignore the citizens' wishes, this is an example of them actually listening to the citizens.
YOU made this happen!Now, we need to get the job finished. The next step is a vote on this Amendment in the Senate. Yes, that means it is time to write again. And, hopefully you'll need to write again to support an effort to get it through Conference Committee.
That we are in a position to ask you to do this is proof positive that it works. We have a short and simple letter this time. Please WRITE NOW!Locate YOUR OWN Senators and their email forms here:http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm Sample Letter to YOUR Senators (copy and paste into the email form). If your Senator is one of those listed at the end as co-sponsors, change the closing to THANK them for their efforts co-sponsoring this amendment.:
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RE: Amendment Number 1447 to DHS Appropriations H.R. 2892
Dear Senator [Insert Senator's Name],
As a pocket knife owner, I support Amendment Number 1447 as a fair and reasonable solution to Customs' rulemaking which would expand the interpretation of what a Switchblade is. I am pleased that Customs has endorsed this amendment as a solution.
I strongly urge you to accept Senators Cornyn, Pryor, Hatch, Vitter, Risch, Chambliss, Corker, Enzi, Barrasso, Graham, Roberts, Wyden and Crapo's amendment, Number 1447, to the Homeland Security Appropriations bill.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
[Individual Signature]
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