aither within the doors or upon a wall of a magazine, or within an office located on the business premises as a handy reference and reminder as noted above.

If you have placed the warning decals on any explosives magazine under the misconception that this was a mandatory requirement, please feel free to remove them or to cover them up. Any further questions on this matter should be directed to the Public Safety Branch in ATF Headquarters.

New Theft and Loss Report Form now available

Form ATF F 5400.5, Report of Theft or Loss of Explosives Materials, has been revised and is now ready for distribution. The key changes include the ATF toll free numbers to contact during the workday, and on weekends. These numbers are:

During normal workdays, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time - (800) 461-8841
After hours and on weekends the number is
(888)-283-2662.

The form also advises that after notifying the nearest ATF office of the theft or loss of the explosive materials, the completed form must be mailed or faxed to the Arson & Explosives National Repository Branch in Washington, D.C. The complete address is:

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms
Arson and Explosives National Repository Branch (AENRB)
P.O. Box 50980
Washington, D.C. 20077-8001

Any questions regarding the completion of the form should be referred to the Public Safety Branch in Bureau Headquarters at (202) 927-7930. If you have any additional questions, contact the AENRB at (800) 461-8841.

The explosive regulations contained in 27 CFR 55.121(a)(2) require all ATF explosives licensees and permittees to keep records required under Subpart G, the Records and Reports section, for a minimum

period of 5 years. Furthermore, section 55.128 requires that when an explosives materials business is discontinued, the records should be sent to the Out-of-Business (OOB) Records Center. However, ATF is reviewing these requirements in the aftermath of September 11th, and we are exploring ways to maintain these records of acquisition and disposition of explosives beyond the current 5-year period mandated by the Federal explosives regulations. In the interim, please take note of these requirements, and if you discontinue your operations please insure that the required records are sent to the OOB Records Center.

ATF encourages active explosives licensees and permittees to voluntarily submit their required explosives records to the Out of Business Records Center every five years. We strongly discourage active explosives licensees and permittees from destroying these records after the retention period.

Please call your ATF office if you would like them picked up for you. We need to maintain these records to improve our ability to conduct explosives traces.

The address and phone number for the OOB Center are:

ATF Out-of-Business Records Center
882 T.J. Jackson Drive
Falling Waters, WV 25419
Toll-free No. (800) 788-7133

The phone number published for ATF's National Licensing Center (NLC) in Atlanta in the May 2002 Explosives Industry Newsletter is not correct. Any persons with questions for the NLC on explosives licensing or permit issues are asked to use the main telephone number for the NLC, which is (404) 417-2750.

ATF regrets any inconvenience that printing an incorrect number may have caused. Any other general questions on licensing or permit requirements should be directed to the Public Safety Branch in ATF Headquarters in Washington, DC.