ATF Gun Registry Exposed, Senate Hearing Raises Alarm Over 1 Billion Records

Summary

During an April 15, 2026, Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing, Gun Owners of America Senior Vice President Erich Pratt testified that the ATF has amassed nearly 1 billion firearm records, with 94% digitized, leading senators to question if this constitutes an undeclared federal gun registry. Pratt warned this system, searchable by manufacturer, model, and serial number, could become a "confiscation list" despite former ATF Director Steve Dettelbach's claim the agency pays extra to suppress name-based searches.