March 2008

     I spent several days last week in Ft. Lauderdale attending a series of meetings of the Board of Governors of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF). The NSSF is the trade association representing the shooting sports industry and the Board of Governors comprises the titans of the industry to include the senior management of Smith and Wesson, Beretta, Sturm Ruger, Taurus, Remington, Winchester, Browning, etc. etc. and while I'm not a titan or member of the Board, these folks are my friends and I consider myself fortunate to "watch the sausage being made".

     While the NSSF is best known as the host of the annual SHOT Show, the association also produces a very wide range of programs in concert with a similarly wide range of partners in support of both the industry as well as the user community . The NSSF is the umbrella organization supporting the Nat'l. Assn. of Firearms Retailers and the Nat'l. Assn. of Shooting Ranges. The NSSF publishes SHOT Business, a monthly trade magazine as well as Bullet Points, a weekly e-newsletter. It compiles a wealth of data which it publishes in regular reports (e.g. hunting demographics and expenditures) as well as offering more tailored research. Safety and conservation are two areas of particular interest to the NSSF, which creates libraries of videos and printed materials; perhaps the best known project is Project Childsafe where, with a federal grant, the NSSF has toured the nation giving away over 50 million gunlocks over the past 5 years. Education is conducted in concert with regulatory agencies such as BATF with "Don't Lie for the Other Guy". Hunting programs include Step Outside, Families Afield and the Hunting Heritage Partnership in concert with the Congressional Sportsman's Caucus. Shooter development programs include First Shots and the Scholastic Clay Target Program, to name only a few.

     As you might expect, as the voice of the industry, the NSSF has a variety of data bases and other fact-based research it shares with the media and other interested groups in an effort to correct/influence public opinion and policy. Similarly, it monitors legislative activity on both state and nationwide platforms. Two particularly disruptive legislative thrusts which are being made across the land include "Microstamping" and "Bullet Serialization", position papers for which can be found at www.nssf.org/legal. The NSSF website is a comprehensive, authorities source of information on a whole variety of issues and is worth a visit.