The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) is a U.S. government-chartered program intended to promote firearm safety training and

rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...

practice for all qualified

U.S. citizen Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constituti ...

s with a specific emphasis on youth. Any

not otherwise legally prohibited from owning a

firearm A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

may purchase a military surplus rifle from the CMP, provided they are a member of a CMP affiliated club. The CMP operates through a network of affiliated private organizations, shooting clubs, and state associations across every

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

in the U.S which variously offer firearms safety training and marksmanship courses as well as continued practice and competition events.

History

The Office of the Director of Civilian Marksmanship (DCM) was created by the

U.S. Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...

as part of the 1903 War Department Appropriations Act. The original purpose was to provide

civilians Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not "combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant, b ...

an opportunity to learn and practice marksmanship skills should they later be called on to serve in the

U.S. military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

. The formation was precipitated by the adoption of the

M1903 Springfield The M1903 Springfield, officially the United States Rifle, Caliber .30-06, Model 1903, is an American five-round magazine-fed, bolt-action service repeating rifle, used primarily during the first half of the 20th century. The M1903 was first u ...

rifle as the national

service rifle A service rifle (or standard-issue rifle) is a rifle a military issues to regular infantry. In modern militaries, this is typically a versatile and rugged battle rifle, assault rifle, or carbine suitable for use in nearly all environments. Most ...

. Civilians experienced with popular contemporary

lever-action The toggle-link action used in the iconic Winchester Model 1873 rifle, one of the most famous lever-action firearms Lever-action is a type of action for repeating firearms that uses a manually operated cocking handle located around the trigger g ...

rifles were commonly unable to sustain an equivalent rate of fire from the unfamiliar

bolt action Bolt-action is a type of manual firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt via a bolt handle, which is most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the weapon (as most users are right-handed). Most bolt-action ...

M1903 rifle. Since its inception, the emphasis of the program has shifted towards specifically youth training. From 1916 until 1996 the CMP was administered by the ''National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice'' (NBPRP), an advisory board to the Secretary of the Army (SA). Title XVI of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1996 (Public Law 104-106, 10 February 1996) created the ''Corporation for the Promotion of Rifle Practice & Firearms Safety'' (CPRPFS) to replace the NBPRP. The CPRPFS is a tax-exempt

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

corporation chartered by the U.S. Congress, but is not an agency of the U.S. government (Title 36, United States Code, Section 40701 ''et seq.''). Apart from a donation of surplus .22 and .30 caliber rifles in the Army's inventory to the CMP, the CMP receives no federal funding. The CMP maintains three main offices: ''CMP North'' at

Camp Perry Camp Perry is a National Guard training facility located on the shore of Lake Erie in northern Ohio near Port Clinton. In addition to its regular mission as a military training base, Camp Perry also boasts the second largest outdoor rifle range ...

near Port Clinton,

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, ''CMP South'' in Anniston,

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

and the CMP Talladega Marksmanship Park in Talladega,

Programs

The CMP offers the sale of surplus U.S. Army rifles including the

M1 Garand The M1 Garand or M1 rifleOfficially designated as U.S. rifle, caliber .30, M1, later simply called Rifle, Caliber .30, M1, also called US Rifle, Cal. .30, M1 is a semi-automatic rifle that was the service rifle of the U.S Army during World War ...

M1917 Enfield The M1917 Enfield, the "American Enfield", formally named "United States Rifle, cal .30, Model of 1917" is an American modification and production of the .303-inch (7.7 mm) Pattern 1914 Enfield (P14) rifle (listed in British Service as Rifle No. ...

M1 Carbine The M1 carbine (formally the United States Carbine, Caliber .30, M1) is a lightweight semi-automatic carbine that was a standard firearm for the U.S. military during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The M1 carbine was produced ...

.22 caliber .22 caliber, or 5.6 mm caliber, refers to a common firearms bore diameter of 0.22 inch (5.6 mm). Cartridges in this caliber include the very widely used .22 Long Rifle and .223 Remington / 5.56×45mm NATO. .22 inch is also a popular ...

(surplus and commercial target), and

air rifle An air gun or airgun is a gun that fires projectiles pneumatically with compressed air or other gases that are mechanically pressurized ''without'' involving any chemical reactions, in contrast to a firearm, which pressurizes gases ''chem ...

s (commercial target) for sale to members of affiliated organizations. Ammunition and other accessories are also sold through the CMP's online store. The

M1911 The M1911 (Colt 1911 or Colt Government) is a single-action, recoil-operated, semi-automatic pistol chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge. The pistol's formal U.S. military designation as of 1940 was ''Automatic Pistol, Caliber .45, M1911'' for th ...

pistol was added in 2018. CMP-facilitated training programs generally teach safety, responsibility, leadership, and competitive excellence in the shooting sports. The CMP supports, sponsors, and hosts various rifle and pistol competitions across the nation including the National Matches at

. They formerly hosted the U.S. Olympics Trials for 10 meter air rifle, and currently host the annual Junior Olympic 3-position air rifle matches, as well as a variety of national junior championships. The CMP runs camps and clinics throughout the year, and their summer camp program offers camps in standing air rifle, 3-position air rifle, and recently added 3-position smallbore.

Competition Tracker

In July 2003, the CMP launched Competition Tracker, an online results system for the shooting sports. Originally designed specifically for the National Trophy matches, the CMP now uses Competition Tracker as the official results bulletin of every CMP competition. In March 2006, during the

JROTC The Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC -- commonly pronounced "JAY-rotsee") is a federal program sponsored by the United States Armed Forces in high schools and also in some middle schools across the United States and at US military ...

National Championships, the CMP used Competition Tracker, in conjunction with Sius Ascor

electronic target Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal * Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device * Electronic ...

s, to provide real-time results on the web. On average, it was 45 seconds from the time a shooter fired a shot to when his or her shot value was seen on the Internet. The CMP is currently researching Visual Image Scoring technology that will allow competitors to score traditional paper targets electronically.

CMP and the military services

The

U.S. armed forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

are authorized to wear marksmanship competition badges, in accordance with each service's regulations. These badges are awarded based on points earned at CMP-sponsored competitions or high placement at special CMP competitions. The following is a list of marksmanship competition badges authorized for wear on U.S. military service uniforms based on points earned at CMP competitions: Examples of US Military EIC Badges

* U.S. Distinguished International Shooter Badge (All services) * Distinguished Rifleman Badge (Army, Air Force, & U.S. Civilians) * Distinguished Marksman Badge (Navy, Marine Corps, & Coast Guard) * Distinguished Pistol Shot Badge (All services) * President's Hundred Tab/Brassard (Army, Navy, & Coast Guard) * Army Excellence In Rifle Competition Badge (Silver or Bronze) * Army Excellence In Pistol Competition Badge (Silver or Bronze) * Air Force Excellence In Rifle Competition Badge (Silver with Wreath or Bronze with Wreath) * Air Force Excellence In Pistol Competition Badge (Silver with Wreath or Bronze with Wreath) * Navy Excellence-in-Competition Rifle Badge (Gold, Silver, or Bronze) ** National, Navy, & Fleet * Navy Excellence-in-Competition Pistol Badge (Gold, Silver, or Bronze) ** National, Navy, & Fleet * Marine Corps Rifle Competition Badge (Gold, Silver, or Bronze) ** National, Marine Corps, & Division * Marine Corps Pistol Competition Badge (Gold, Silver, or Bronze) ** National, Marine Corps, & Division * Coast Guard Rifleman Excellence-in-Competition Badge (Silver or Bronze) ** National & Coast Guard * Coast Guard Pistol Shot Excellence in Competition Badge (Silver or Bronze) ** National & Coast Guard

References

External links