Orchid eState™ Software Addendum to Orchid Terms & Conditions
Federal Firearms Licensees (“FFL”) are required to follow all Federal and State laws when selling and distributing firearms. Orchid Advisors and the attorneys at Orchid Law have developed the eState™ software suite to assist FFLs in complying with their legal and regulatory obligations. eState™ features three primary solutions; the State and Federal Firearm Bill Tracker, the Firearm Law Library, and the Firearm Restriction Search. THE FOLLOWING TERMS ARE AN ADDENDUM TO THE ORCHID SOFTWARE AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES TERMS OF SERVICE AND ALL USERS UTILIZING THE SOFTWARE EXPRESSLY ACKNOWLEDGE ASSENT TO THESE ADDITIONAL TERMS. The Terms and Conditions and this Addendum may change from time to time so users should periodically review each.
eState™ State and Federal Firearm Bill Tracker
As a service provider to the firearms industry, Orchid Advisors monitors pending legislation that affects the firearms industry on a daily basis in all 50 States as well as US Congress and the District of Columbia. The legislation you see here is curated to present legislation that impacts businesses as opposed to legislation that impacts individuals.
An example may help clarify for users. A bill proposed in a State that would allow individuals to carry a firearm concealed in a public park would not appear in this list. That is a law that would impact an individual as opposed to a firearms business. On the other hand, a bill proposed that would create a new recordkeeping obligation for dealers or that would require FFLs to implement a security system, or that would prohibit a certain class of firearms for sale to consumers (e.g., “assault weapons”); such bills would appear here as it would be a direct impact to the operations of an FFL.
Some bills may appear here that although purport to affect an individual right would have such a strong indirect impact to the industry as to merit inclusion in this list. For example, passage of a bill that provides for “Constitutional Carry” in a jurisdiction could be expected to lead to a spike in handgun sales. Businesses who are aware of this information could plan and allocate inventory and marketing resources as necessary to benefit from such opportunity.
As this list is curated it is subjective in nature. Orchid does its utmost to ensure that firearms businesses are aware of all pending legislation that may impact its future. If you think a bill has been omitted, please feel free to submit a support ticket and we will attempt to update the tracker in a timely fashion.
eState™ Firearms Restriction Search
An FFL’s obligation to follow all Federal and State laws when selling and distributing firearms, silencers, magazines, and parts includes ensuring a firearm sold to a consumer is legal in the State in which the FFL operates and the purchaser’s State of residence, if different. The Orchid e-State™ software provides a consolidated search of prohibited firearms, magazines, and silencers for all 50 States and Federally. eState™ Firearms Restrictions Search identifies items that are generally prohibited for transfer to consumers and does not identify any exemptions that may apply to certain entities or individuals (e.g., FFLs, Police Officers, etc.).
Please note that eState™ is subject to Orchid’s Terms of Service and this Addendum and users use the software at their own risk. Improper use of this tool by users may produce incorrect results (e.g., user selects wrong accessory on firearm, user selects wrong jurisdiction, user enters wrong UPC or ZIP code, etc.).
While we have made every effort to include all States and localities in the software, given the sheer magnitude of jurisdictions in the country (nearly 40,000), we cannot guarantee that every city, county, unincorporated territory, town, borough, etc. has been included in the software. If there is a jurisdiction with a restriction you would like to see included in the tool please submit a support ticket and we will endeavor to update the software in a timely manner.
Orchid makes extraordinary efforts to ensure its UPC library is up to date and includes all modern firearms currently for sale. There is no central repository in the nation for this information. As such, we are constantly updating our UPC database but do not guarantee the UPC users search for has been included in the database. If you would like to see a UPC added to the software please submit a support ticket and we will attempt to update the software in a timely manner. Users who are attempting to search for a UPC not currently included should utilize the attribute selection method to inquire as to their product.
Finally, Orchid monitors pending legislation and litigation on a daily basis and makes its best effort to update the software when any new restriction has been put in place or when an existing restriction no longer applies (e.g., law stricken from books, Court deems law unconstitutional, etc.). Given the extreme volatility in the judicial environment and the tens of thousands of different courts in which litigation may be pending at any given time we cannot guarantee that the software is updated instantaneously. However, Orchid uses its best faith and commercially reasonable efforts to ensure that the restrictions are so updated.
eState™ Firearms Law Library and Rosters
The Firearms Law Library is intended to be a compendium of laws and regulations useful for compliance and legal professionals in the firearms industry to conduct research. As the laws and regulations are constantly evolving, so too is the Firearms Law Library.
The Firearms Law Library does not contain every statute or regulation in the country that impacts a firearms business. For example, while certainly subject to income tax we do not include State or Federal tax laws herein. Further, in some instances only a portion of a statute or regulation may be included in the Firearms Law Library.
Gathering all statutes and regulations applicable to core firearms operations of a business is an extreme undertaking to which Orchid Advisors has committed itself. While the Firearms Law Library is not complete as of the date of release of the eState™ software suite, it can assist professionals in identifying certain statutes or regulations and pointing them in the correct direction to conduct their own inquiry as to a particular jurisdiction. Further, as new laws and regulations are continually passed and stricken the Firearms Law Library will be a constantly evolving repository.