The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is an American national

trade association A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry. An industry trade association partic ...

for the firearms industry that is based in

Newtown, Connecticut Newtown is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the Greater Danbury metropolitan area as well as the New York metropolitan area. Newtown was founded in 1705, and later incorporated in 1711. As of the 2020 cens ...

. Formed in 1961, the organization has more than 8,000 members: firearms manufacturers, distributors, retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen's clubs and media.The History of The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF)
NSSF.org, Retrieved December 20, 2012. The NSSF mission is "To promote, protect and preserve hunting and the shooting sports". In addition to promoting gun ownership, the NSSF helps write safety and instruction standards.Rawlings, Nate
In the Shadow of Sandy Hook, a Powerful Pro-Gun Organization Keeps Silent
''Time'', December 15, 2012. Retrieved, December 20, 2012. The NSSF sponsors the annual Shooting Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show, the (

SHOT Show The SHOT Show , which is an acronym for "Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show", is an American annual trade show for the shooting sports, hunting, outdoor recreations and firearm manufacturing industries. The show is owned and sponsored b ...

). The NSSF has advocated in favor of gun rights, including arguing against limits on high capacity magazines and the broad use of the term "

assault weapon In the United States, ''assault weapon'' is a controversial term used to define firearms with specified characteristics. The definition varies among regulating jurisdictions, but usually includes semi-automatic firearms with a detachable magaz ...

". It has also supported legislation allowing

concealed carry Concealed carry, or carrying a concealed weapon (CCW), is the practice of carrying a weapon (usually a sidearm such as a handgun), either in proximity to or on one's person or in public places in a manner that hides or conceals the weapon's pr ...

and has offered proposals to prohibit the

Environmental Protection Agency A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale ...

from regulating chemicals in ammunition as well as other sports such as fishing where lead is routinely used for its density.DePillis, Lydia
The Second Most Powerful Gun Lobby Is in Newtown, Connecticut
''The New Republic'', December 14, 2012, retrieved, December 20, 2012.

Management

Steve Sanetti, the president since 2008, is a former Army captain and former president of Sturm, Ruger & Co. where he "helped direct 'the successful coordinated response to municipal lawsuits that threatened the firearms industry in the late 1990s,' according to a 2008 press release".Wilkie, Christina and Saki Knafo
"National Shooting Sports Foundation, Newtown Gun Lobby, Keeps Military-Style Guns Legal"
12/22/2012. Retrieved 2012-12-23. Doug Painter, a former NSSF president, was featured in a video released by the group in 2009. According to the

Sunlight Foundation The Sunlight Foundation was an American 501(c)(3) nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that advocated for open government. The organization was founded in April 2006 with the goal of increasing transparency and accountability in the United States ...

, the NSSF spent $1.7 million on lobbying efforts from 1998 to 2012.

SHOT Show

The largest gun show in the United States is the annual

, sponsored by the NSSF. It attracted over 60,000 attendees to its 630,000 square feet of exhibition space in Las Vegas. It is among the top 25 trade shows in the country.

Industry and NSSF history

The state of Connecticut has a long history in the manufacture of guns, going back to

Eli Whitney Eli Whitney Jr. (December 8, 1765January 8, 1825) was an American inventor, widely known for inventing the cotton gin, one of the key inventions of the Industrial Revolution that shaped the economy of the Antebellum South. Although Whitney hi ...

and

Samuel Colt Samuel Colt (; July 19, 1814 – January 10, 1862) was an American inventor, industrialist, and businessman who established Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company (now Colt's Manufacturing Company) and made the mass production of ...

. Since 2000, as the national interest in hunting has declined according to one report, gun manufacturers have increasingly relied on the sale of high-powered semi-automatic rifles. In that context, NSSF has concentrated on marketing semi-automatic rifles. Between 2000 and 2003 the

Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction o ...

conducted an anti-trust investigation of gun industry players including the NSSF. It was alleged that they were boycotting

Smith & Wesson Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. (S&W) is an American firearm manufacturer headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States. Smith & Wesson was founded by Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson as the "Smith & Wesson Revolver Company" in 1856 ...

due to that company's agreement with the

Clinton administration Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over ...

to require background checks on purchasers and provide gun locks. The probe was suspended in 2003 by the Bush administration, with the NSSF's

general counsel A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department. In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...

claiming it had been politically motivated. In response to the

Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting occurred on December 14, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut, United States, when 20-year-old Adam Lanza shot and killed 26 people. Twenty of the victims were children between six and seven years old, and t ...

that occurred in Newtown on December 14, 2012, from the organization's headquarters, the NSSF expressed its sympathies on its website and declined to immediately comment. The following month, Sanetti noted that his employees were personally affected by the Newtown massacre, saying in a speech at the 2013 SHOT Show: "Who among us has not been moved by that unspeakable tragedy that was inflicted by a deranged man upon the children of Newtown, Conn., our very home as the NSSF?"

NSSF and shooting range development

Within the firearms industry the National Shooting Sports Foundation promotes the development of state-of-the-art target shooting facilities by providing leadership in information, communication and partnerships between ranges, industry and community. To meet the National Shooting Sports Foundation's criteria of a Five Star facility, a range must demonstrate excellence in all aspects of management and operations. Ranges are rated on appearance, management, customer service, amenities, customer development and community relations. The first range to receive this distinction was H&H Shooting Sports in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, there are currently 33 ranges with the distinction of a Five Star facility.

Legislation

The NSSF supported the Bipartisan Sportsmen's Act of 2014 (S. 2363; 113th Congress). The NSSF thanked Senator Thad Cochran for co-sponsoring the bill.

References

External links

Official website

NSSF Federal Legislation Tracker with NSSF positions
{{Authority control Gun rights advocacy groups in the United States Hunting in the United States Trade associations based in the United States Newtown, Connecticut Shooting sports organizations Shooting sports in the United States Organizations established in 1961 Sports organizations established in 1961