New Documents Also Reveal Gun Companies’ Dangerous Marketing Tactics to Sell AR-15s and Failure to Monitor Use of Their Guns to Kill Americans Washington, D.C. (July 27, 2022)— “Today, Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, released new findings from the Committee’s investigation into five major gun manufacturers’ sales and marketing of AR-15-style assault rifles, the weapons of choice for murderers responsible for America’s deadly mass shootings.  The findings come ahead of the Committee’s hearing at 10:00 a.m. ET on the role of the firearms industry in America’s gun violence epidemic. Chairwoman Maloney issued the following statement after releasing the new findings: “How much are the lives of America’s children, teachers, parents, and families worth to gun manufacturers?  My Committee’s investigation has revealed that the country’s major gun manufacturers have collected more than $1 billion in revenue from selling military-style assault weapons to civilians.  These companies are selling the weapon of choice for mass murderers who terrorize young children at school, hunt down worshippers at churches and synagogues, and slaughter families on the Fourth of July.  In short, the gun industry is profiting off the blood of innocent Americans.“My Committee has found that the business practices of these gun manufacturers are deeply disturbing, exploitative, and reckless.  These companies use aggressive marketing tactics to target young people—especially young men—and some even evoke symbols of white supremacy.  Yet we found that none of these companies bothers to keep track of the death and destruction caused by their products. ,,,On May 26, 2022, following the mass shootings in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, the Committee sent letters to Daniel Defense, LLC, Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc., Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc., Sig Sauer, Inc., and Bushmaster Firearms Industries, Inc. seeking information on their sale and marketing of AR-15-style semiautomatic rifles and similar firearms The Committee has learned that the five gun companies collected more than $1 billion over the last decade from sale of military-style assault weapons to civilians, as gun violence and mass shootings surged across the United States.  These companies use disturbing sales tactics—including marketing deadly weapons as a way for young men to prove their masculinity and selling guns to mass shooters on credit—while failing to take basic steps to monitor the violence their products unleashed.”