Trump administration finalizing bump stock ban

The Trump administration is finalizing a proposed rule to ban bump stocks.

CNN reported Wednesday that the administration is preparing to announce the ban in the coming days.

President Trump said last month that within weeks “I’ll be able to write out bump stocks.”

{mosads}Trump promised action on the issue earlier this year, following a shooting in Las Vegas that left 59 people dead. The device, which allows a semi-automatic weapon to be fired much more rapidly, was used in the mass shooting.

The administration is using the regulatory process to implement the ban.

The Department of Justice proposed a rule in March to ban the devices by modifying an existing rule defining “machine gun.” Machine guns are prohibited under federal law, but the device that modifies some guns to act like machine guns was not included in the definition. 

The proposed rule would change that “to clarify that the National Firearms and Gun Control Act defines ‘machine gun’ to include bump stock-type devices,” then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in March.

The rule required approval by the Office of Management and Budget, a review by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and a public comment period.

“We are now at the final stages of the procedure,” Trump said in October.

The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.