Which Executive Order banned Milsurp ammo?

[OtG]

See title. I searched google, and found this:

http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/executive_orders/clinton.html

I've searched through all of the Clinton years, and found nothing. Is it an executive order? Some other law? Myth?


-Owen

 

[countertop]

An executive order can't ban ammo. It can't ban guns. It can't ban anything. It can only direct a federal agency to act a certain way.

anyway, where did you ever hear military surplus ammo was banned?

 

[Dbl0Kevin]

I think what he's probably referring to is that much military ammo is "demilled" where the bullet is pulled and powder taken out, then is reloaded with commercial powder and the bullet put back in before being sold. Not sure exactly why this came about, but I'm inclined to say it's just another case of political correctness gone awry.

 

[OtG]

Saw it on ammo oracle:

http://www.ammo-oracle.com/body.htm#wheremil

Purchase and Storage of .223 and 5.56 Ammunition.


"Q. Where can I get US Military ammo, like M193 and M855?

Due to an Executive Order signed by President Clinton, the US military can no longer "surplus" ammunition, except via the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), and the CMP does not sell 5.56/.223 ammo. US military ammo (most notably from the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant) used to be widely available, but has become quite scarce and the prices quite high, in the last few years. Though some military ammo components are "saved" by contractors disassembling the ammo and selling the components, most expired or out-of-spec lots of ammo are burned. Billions of rounds of ammo, paid for by US tax dollars, are burned yearly."


I thought that this sounded a bit odd, even for the .gov, so I wanted to verify it. So far no dice.

-Owen

 

[c_yeager]

Im not sure which one it is specifically. But, telling the military not to sell surplus ammo to civilians is well within the realm of executive powers. It's still stupid though...

 

[Zach S]

Why buy military ammo twice?

I never really understood why they pull the bullet and then reload it. If they'd just sell it to us, can, stripper clips and all, the defense buget could have a few bucks added to it. I'd imagine that no one buys in bulk like Uncle Sam. They could sell old M16 uppers with the evil M16 bolt carriers removed, old mags, overstocked/old ammo, ammo cans, spent brass, ect.

 

[Cosmoline]

Ah, the wisdom of the federal gobment. It reminds me of all the jeeps, tanks, half-tracks and other gear deep sixed after WWII. Can't have all that useful equipment bogging down the military!

I'm also perplexed as to why they need to destroy old ammo lots. I've got Turkey mauser ammo that's been stored for over fifty years, and it shoots better than ever. It'll blast through steel plate at 100 yards.

 

[RevDisk]

Old helicopters, vehicles, ammo, weapons, etc are usually offered to various "friendly" third world countries for a deeply reduced rate or for free. If no other country wants it, they are destroyed.

Military vehicles tend to have metal dashboards, hence are not street legal.

As for ammo, weapons, kevlar armor, they're destroyed if another country doesn't want them. Can't sell that stuff to civilians and make up for the costs because that'd be un-PC.

 

[EOD Guy]

Saw it on ammo oracle:

http://www.ammo-oracle.com/body.htm#wheremil

Purchase and Storage of .223 and 5.56 Ammunition.


"Q. Where can I get US Military ammo, like M193 and M855?

Due to an Executive Order signed by President Clinton, the US military can no longer "surplus" ammunition, except via the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP), and the CMP does not sell 5.56/.223 ammo. US military ammo (most notably from the Lake City Army Ammunition Plant) used to be widely available, but has become quite scarce and the prices quite high, in the last few years. Though some military ammo components are "saved" by contractors disassembling the ammo and selling the components, most expired or out-of-spec lots of ammo are burned. Billions of rounds of ammo, paid for by US tax dollars, are burned yearly."


I thought that this sounded a bit odd, even for the .gov, so I wanted to verify it. So far no dice.

-Owen

The CMP does sell 5.56/.223 ammo but it is not government surplus. Their charter only allows them to sell .30 cal, 7.62mm, and .22 rimfire ammunition from government surplus stocks. Any other ammunition is purchased from civilian sources.

 

[Ky Larry]

The federal government does things like this because they have no incentive to behave responsibly. The entire system of procurement and disposal is geared toward political pork, not cost savings.

 

[DMF]

The federal government does things like this because they have no incentive to behave responsibly.

Actually they do it for liability reasons. If someone purchased a few rounds of surplus ammo, and got hurt in a freak accident, the tort lawyers would love to explain how the ammo didn't meet military standards, and even though it wasn't "safe" enough GI Joe, the G recklessly sold it to Joe Sixpack. Juries would eat that up.

 

[countertop]

Actually they do it for liability reasons. If someone purchased a few rounds of surplus ammo, and got hurt in a freak accident, the tort lawyers would love to explain how the ammo didn't meet military standards, and even though it wasn't "safe" enough GI Joe, the G recklessly sold it to Joe Sixpack. Juries would eat that up.

I don't think a jury would ever get to it. The claim would most likely need to be brought in the Court of Federal Claims in Washington, D.C., if in fact, Congress has allowed these kinds of suits to be brought - you see, thats another dirty little secret of Washington. In order to sue the federal government, you generally need its permission.

 

[EOD Guy]

Actually they do it for liability reasons. If someone purchased a few rounds of surplus ammo, and got hurt in a freak accident, the tort lawyers would love to explain how the ammo didn't meet military standards, and even though it wasn't "safe" enough GI Joe, the G recklessly sold it to Joe Sixpack. Juries would eat that up.

That doesn't make sense because the Army does release surplus military ammunition to the CMP for sale to the civilian populace.