Sunday, August 01, 2010
Taxpayer privacy
The transfer paperwork is nominally a tax return; the purpose of the registration, and the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record (Registry) is keeping track of who owes the tax. ATF takes the position that taxpayer privacy laws apply to a transfer form, and that they may not discuss a pending transfer with anyone but the taxpayer, who is the transferor (seller), as he is responsible for the tax by law. This also serves to allow ATF to refuse to discuss why a transfer is taking so long with the party who is most interested in that question, the transferee (buyer). However, in another context (releasing information under the Freedom of Information Act) ATF has decided that as to a Form 4, the tax form is a joint return between the transferor and transferee, (see 1980 Auto Ordnance Corp. memo) so in that case the transferee should be entitled to the information about the application on the same basis as the transferor. That is not the usual practice, however. The NFA also prohibits the use of Registry information obtained from natural persons (only) for any law enforcement purpose except prosecutions for making a false statement on a transfer form (26 USC sec. 5848). Other tax laws prohibit the release of transfer information, as a tax return, except for certain narrow law enforcement type circumstances. See 26 USC sec. 6103.
First Woman Takes Helm of Carrier Group
When Nora W. Tyson entered the Navy in 1979, women were not allowed to go to sea on aircraft carriers. The idea of a woman commanding a mighty carrier strike group? That was certainly for another day.
UN Removes Five Taliban From Blacklist
The U.N. Security Council on Friday removed five Taliban members from its sanctions blacklist, a move sought by the Afghan government to promote reconciliation.
