The Trump administration wants to make it easier for American manufacturers to sell guns, including assault rifles, and ammunition overseas, Reuters reported Tuesday.
The wire service reported Trump aides are working on a plan to put the Commerce Department in charge of international, non-military firearms sales. Currently, the State Department is in charge of those sales.
The State Department typically is most concerned about threats to stability abroad and tightly controls weapons deals. The Commerce Department is more concerned with allowing trade to go ahead, the report stated.
Last year, the State Department licensed roughly $4 billion in commercial firearms exports, according to Reuters. Of that $4 billion, $3.2 billion would move to the Commerce Department under the Trump administration’s considered changes, according to one U.S. official.
Trump administration officials said the new rules come with numerous benefits, including creating jobs in the U.S., easing the regulatory burden and costs, and increasing U.S. exports of small arms.
But the changes are of concern to lawmakers and advocates of arms control, who fear loosening the rules to sell guns and ammunition overseas would make it easier for criminal gangs and extremists to gain access to weapons, including those used in mass shootings.
The Trump administration, though, is close to finalizing its proposal, and officials told Reuters it’s expected to be sent to the Office of Management and Budget in several days.
Once the White House budget office reviews the rules, they will be made available to the public for comment. After the public comment period has ended, the rules could be implemented as early as the first six months of 2018.
According to Reuters, the change from the Trump administration could be a boon to U.S. gun manufacturers who have been struggling in recent months.
While domestic gun sales ramped up under former President Barack Obama, gun makers such as Sturm, Ruger and Co., and Smith & Wesson, owned by American Outdoor Brands Corp, have seen their shares decline since the election in November.
Both companies, among others, would likely benefit from the eased export rules under consideration by the Trump administration.
Larry Keane, senior vice president at the National Shooting Sports Foundation, told Reuters putting the Commerce Department in charge of non-military firearms sales could boost annual sales by between 15 and 20 percent.
