Maine Gun Dealers Left Without Guidelines on Controversial 72-Hour Waiting Period Law

The new gun control regulations coming to Maine’s firearms dealers and users were shrouded in a sense of urgency and immediacy, but the state of Maine is dragging its heels when it comes to telling those affected how to comply with the new rules.

Maine’s firearms dealers have not been given any guidelines from the Department of Public Safety (DPS) or any other government office on the implementation of the controversial new 72-hour waiting period law, which imposes a mandatory three-day delay between a firearm sale and the firearm changing hands.

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“We’ve actually been reaching out for guidance. We’ve received absolutely no information,” said a licensed firearm dealer speaking to The Maine Wire.

“We would love to know what we had to do,” the dealer said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.

“I believe that we heard from someone unofficially that we don’t have to worry about it until the end of the month. But this doesn’t make me feel good when I work in this industry,” they said.

The Maine Wire reached out to numerous firearm dealers across the state, and none of them had received any guidelines on how they are expected to implement the changes.

Following the Oct. 25 shooting in Lewiston, gun control activists and liberal legislators focused their efforts on implementing stricter gun-control measures, pushing for bans on “assault weapons” and so-called “high capacity” magazines, and a 72-hour waiting period bill.

Although not all the proposed gun-control legislation passed, the waiting period successfully became law.

The waiting period was celebrated by Democrats as a victory for gun control, but, despite the celebrations, a waiting period would not have stopped the Lewiston shooting, since Robert Card, the murderer, owned his firearms for far more than three days.

Despite cheering the law as a significant victory, the Democrat-controlled government has not actually implemented it — or even taken steps to ensure a smooth implementation.

The law is technically supposed to go into effect on Aug. 9.

Typically, government agencies provide abundant bulletins, memos, and informational guidance when imposing even minor regulations on an industry.

The lack of guidance has left firearms dealers wondering what they will have to do to comply with the law or how the law could affect how they are allowed to conduct business.

It is unclear why a law which was meant to address what Democrats considered a top issue is now being ignored by Democrat-appointed officials.

The Maine Wire reached out to the DPS, asking why no guidelines have been issued, and when those guidelines can be expected, but they did not respond to requests for comment.