*This message was transferred with a trial version of CommuniGate(tm) Pro*
List,
I sent the attached message to Rob Kiser at about 0730 this morning. I
haven't received a reply. I wonder if anybody else has tried the fax number.
If so, have you been successful?
John
-----Original Message-----
From: John Hutterer
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2000 7:21 AM
To: 'RKiser8375@aol.com'
Subject: RE: [MV] Urgent!!! You can help change U.S. policy on importing
U.S. military vehicles!!!
Rob,
I tried to send a letter to John Holum via Fax, three times. Each time, the
line would ring and try to connect to the fax, but no connection was
established. Eventually, a recording came on that basically said that this
was not going to work and that I should check the number and try again.
Any idea why his fax and phone numbers are at different exchanges? Fax=736,
phone =647. That seems strange if the fax and phone are in the same office.
By the way, you said that they were meeting on Friday, May 10th. Which is
it? Yesterday was May 10th, but Friday is the 12th. Are we too late already,
or do we still have another day? You might want to send a clarification to
the List as I assume that others may have had similar questions and problems
getting through on the fax.
John
-----Original Message-----
From: RKiser8375@aol.com [mailto:RKiser8375@aol.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2000 11:52 AM
To: mil-veh@uller.skylee.com
Subject: [MV] Urgent!!! You can help change U.S. policy on importing
U.S. military vehicles!!!
*This message was transferred with a trial version of CommuniGate(tm) Pro*
The U.S. State Department Under-Secretary John Holum is considering changing
the current
policy which prohibits importing military vehicles of U.S. origin. Your
help
could make it
possible to import some military vehicles which have been kept out of the
U.S. for 50 years!
First, The Bad News:
Currently, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BATF) will issue a
Form-6
for importation of a military vehicle if it does not have any weapons on it
or if it has weapons
which have been de-militarized (de-milled) according to BATF regulations.
However,
the BATF then routes all Form-6's to the State Department for approval.
When the State Department receives a Form-6 from the BATF on any military
vehicle of U.S. origin
that is armored or amphibous, it will be denied importation. These vehicles
are considered to
be "Siginificant Military Equipment" (SME's) by the U.S. State Department.
These restrictions
apparently stem from the Lend-Lease Act after WWII when U.S. military
vehicles were
transferred to our allies under the condition that they not be resold
without
being offered
for sale to the U.S. government. The State Department's position, as I
understand it, has been
that presumably these vehicles were sold to private citizens or companies in
voilation of these
agreements, and therefore, they won't allow these vehicles back into the
U.S.
interestingly, the
State Department does not interefere with the importation of foreign
military
vehicles, only
vehicles of U.S. origin. It is also worth noting that soft-skinned
(un-armored) vehicles are
generally not considered SME's. Also, the State Department apparently will
allow importation
of SME's in some cases if the vehicle is imported for "static display" in a
museum (and
holes are bored through the engine so that it can never run again).
Now, The Good News:I have talked extensively with the BATF and the State
Department over
the last couple of weeks and have found them to be very friendly and
sympathetic to our concerns.
Everyone that I have spoken to in the State Department seems to want to
change the policy
to allow private U.S. citizens to import "SME" military vehicles. My
understanding is that
they are currently trying to decide exactly how the policy should be
modified
and what the
exact language should be. One individual indicated that after I filled out
a
Form-6 and submitted
it to the BATF whereby it was routed to the State Department, the lawyers
for
the State Department
would send me a contract of some sort indicating that I was purchasing the
military vehicle
as a private collector and it was not for resale and it would be used in
parades, etc. After
I signed this contract and returned it to the State Department, then the
Form-6 would be
approved. It occurred to me that this was better than not allowing the
vehicles to be imported,
but still somewhat Draconian.
What You Can Do To Help:
Send a fax to John Holum, U.S. State Department Under-Secretary at
Ideally, I think we would all like to see the State Department allow
citizens
to import SME
military vehicles of U.S. origin without restrictions. I believe that the
State Department
is sympathetic to our plight. What you could do to help is send a very
polite, un-emotional
communication in your own words and mention some of the following points:
* I collect and restore miltary vehicles as a hobby...
* I am a member of the Military Vehicle Preservation Authority, MVCC, etc...
* I use my miltary vehicles in parades on Memorial Day and loan them to the
VFW...
* Please change the policy so that I may import any miltary vehicles of U.S.
origin
without restrictions on their use, so long as they are approved by the BATF.
Please write a letter in your own words that is un-emotional and very
polite.
I have talked to these people and they are trying to help us. Don't mention
Janet Reno or Ruby Ridge or Waco or Alien Gonzales. We need to come
across as a rational group of people that is interested in restoring
military
vehicles as a hobby, not a bunch of radicals.
Having said that, fax your letter to the attention of: "John Holum, U.S.
State
Department Under-Secretary". His fax number is (202)736-4397.
You can reach him by phone at (202)647-1049. The next meeting when
they will discuss modifying the policy is scheduled for this Friday (May
10th).
Please email me off the list at rkiser8375@aol.com and let me know if you
contact John so I can
have some idea how many faxes are sent.
Also, please forward this to as many other people or list-servers as
possible.
Rob Kiser (rkiser8375@aol.com)
'52 M37
'65 M101-A1
'45 M29-C
'45 M29-C
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This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Thu Jun 01 2000 - 22:37:11 PDT