NRA & Gun Control
Timeline
1986
Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986
After years of lobbying by the NRA, Congress passed the Firearm Owners Protection Act of 1986, which, among other gun-friendly provisions, eased restrictions on interstate sales of firearms and expressly prohibited the federal government from creating a database of gun ownership. A huge NRA triumph, the media declared. Some lawmakers..Read More
1978
Wayne LaPierre hired by the NRA
LaPierre was hired by Knox in 1978 as an NRA lobbyist. He had helped write the gun-friendly 1986 legislation, and he maintained an unwavering stance on the Second Amendment.
1977
Cincinnati Revolt
The Revolt at Cincinnati, also known as the Cincinnati Coup and the Cincinnati Revolution, was a change in National Rifle Association (NRA) leadership and organizational policy that took place at the group’s 1977 annual convention in Cincinnati, Ohio. Led by former NRA President Harlon Carter and Neal Knox, the movement..Read More
1976
NRA Political Victory Fund (PVF) PAC
The NRA Political Victory Fund (PVF) PAC was established in 1976 to challenge gun-control candidates and to support gun-rights candidates. An NRA “A+” candidate is one who has “not only an excellent voting record on all critical NRA issues, but who has also made a vigorous effort to promote and..Read More
1975
NRA forms the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA)
The passage of the GCA in 1968 galvanized a growing number of NRA gun rights activists, including Harlon Carter and Neil Knox. In 1975, the NRA began to focus more on politics and established its lobbying arm, the Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA), with Harlon Carter as director.
1974
Handgun Control, Inc. (HCI)
The National Council to Control Handguns (NCCH) was founded in 1974. From 1980 through 2000 it operated under the name Handgun Control, Inc. (HCI). In 2001, it was renamed the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, and its sister project, the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence, was renamed the Brady..Read More
Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV)
The Coalition to Stop Gun Violence (CSGV) gun control organization founded in 1974. They are the nation’s oldest gun control organization. They are the affiliate organization of The Educational Fund to Stop Gun Violence. CSGV is dedicated to taking on the National Rifle Association (NRA). They were the first gun..Read More
1972
Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms formed
In 1972 ATF was officially established as an independent bureau within the Treasury Department on July 1, 1972, this transferred the responsibilities of the ATF division of the IRS to the new Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. The ATF was formerly part of the United States Department of the..Read More
1968
Gun Control Act of 1968
Following the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Attorney General and U.S. Senator Robert F. Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., President Lyndon B. Johnson pushed for the passage of the Gun Control Act of 1968. The GCA repealed and replaced the FFA, updated Title II of the NFA..Read More
1960
NRA Police Firearms Instructor certification program
NRA became the only national trainer of law enforcement officers with the introduction of its NRA Police Firearms Instructor certification program in 1960. Today, there are more than 13,000 NRA-certified police and security firearms instructors. Additionally, top law enforcement shooters compete each year in eight different pistol and shotgun matches..Read More