Trump administration to ban bump stocks

The Trump administration will officially ban bump stocks, a U.S. Department of Justice official said Tuesday. Beginning in late March, it will be illegal to possess the devices, which increase the firing rate of semi-automatic firearms. The regulation was signed by acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker on Tuesday morning and is expected to be formally published in the Federal Register on Friday, according to the official, who wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter publicly ahead of the formal publication. Bump stocks will be banned under the federal law that prohibits the possession of machine guns.

President Donald Trump earlier this year directed the DOJ to impose new regulations to ban bump stocks after investigators discovered they were used by the gunman who killed 58 people at a Las Vegas concert in October of last year. Legislation banning the devices also won bipartisan support in Congress a few days after the shooting.

Owners of bump stocks will be required to destroy them or surrender them to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives by late March.