Unlikely Federal Agencies Creating Large Ammo Stockpiles?
Amidst efforts led by Senate democrats to limit ammunition sales to citizens, some unlikely federal agencies have recently been soliciting bids for huge quantities of ammunition. Coupled with other recent solicitations for items like quantities of riot gear and bullet-proof checkpoint booths, some are wondering if the feds are gearing up for some sort of anticipated domestic troubles.
In one solicitation the NOAA’s National Weather Service solicited a bid for 46,000 rounds of 180 grain JHB .40 S&W ammunition to be delivered to various locations including Maine, Massachusetts, Florida and New Jersey – whose NJSA 2C:39-3f(1) limits citizens’ possession of such ammunition with the following language:
Any person, other than a law enforcement officer or persons engaged in activities pursuant to subsection f. of N.J.S.2C:39-6, who knowingly has in his possession any hollow nose or dum-dum bullet […] is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree.
After word of the solicitation began making waves, it was later modified to indicate that the request for the large quantity of ammunition was, in fact, meant to be for the Marine Fisheries Service branch of NOAA rather than the National Weather Service – which was initially named due to a “clerical error.”
In another solicitation, the Social Security Administration (SSA) is seeking price quotes for 174,000 rounds of 125 grain JHP .357 Sig ammunition to be delivered to 40+ locations. The SSA explained their reasons for the large ammunition purchase in a blog post citing their “295 special agents and supervisory special agents [who] work in 66 offices across the United States. These investigators have full law enforcement authority, including executing search warrants and making arrests.”
These solicitations from NOAA and SSA come just months after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in March, purchased 450 million rounds of hollow-point .40 S&W ammunition along with another DHS solicitation for 750 million rounds of various calibers. Alex Jones’s Infowars site points out that portions of the solicitation, including some quantities, were later redacted.