The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has recently tried to ban the popular green tip bullets that are commonly used in the AR-15 semiautomatic rifles. The ATF tried to ban the use of the AR-15 rifle in 2013, but it sparked a backlash by gun-rights supporters, killing any chance the ban had of going through.

It is thought by many that the ATF is trying to put a ban on the ammunition because they could not ban the rifle. The NRA (National Rifle Association) worked with Representative Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) to get the bureau to explain the abrupt ban, and the ATF said that the green tips are being used in handguns as well and could be a greater threat to police.

The ATF uses a framework to classify certain bullets as  armor piercing or used for sporting. The document says that ammunition is considered “armor piercing” if it can penetrate body armor and is designed to be used in a handgun. Green tips are the most common design for the AR-15, used primarily by hunters and sportsmen, but most of the big stores sold out of the bullets since people heard about the new ban. The ATF has postponed the ban due to the multiple complaints of gun owners.

I honestly think that postponing the ban was a good idea for many reasons, including because the ones who use the bullets are primarily hunters and sportsmen. The bullets are designed for rifles and not as much for handguns, and they would not exactly be classified as armor piercing because they don’t quite fit that classification, being meant for rifles. However, I think the ATF also has good points about the bullets being used in handguns because a handgun can be hidden with ease. I think I would wait to see if anything bad would happen before they ban the bullets completely.