FET Slippage Remains a Top Priority for ATA

ATA’s Dan Forster connects with Congress, partners and ATA members regarding federal excise tax slippage to discuss how to ensure products manufactured by foreign-based entities are subject to the same taxes as those made by U.S. companies. Meanwhile, ATA members must do their part to educate customers and encourage them to buy locally. These efforts are swift to follow the recent completion of the Government Accountability Office's report.

About FET Slippage

Millions of federal excise taxes are lost annually through online marketplaces, where non-U.S. companies sell products direct to U.S. consumers. Because the online process doesn’t recognize internet marketplace facilitators as importers who would otherwise be responsible for paying the federal excise taxes on these transactions, these funds are slipping through the cracks. Unfortunately, that oversight puts American archery manufacturers at an 11% tax disadvantage and hurts state wildlife agencies that rely on FET dollars to conduct necessary habitat restoration, hunter education, wildlife research and other conservation projects.

FET slippage affects the archery industry, the entire conservation community, and individual manufacturers, dealers and consumers, which is why the ATA addresses the issue. The ATA is working closely with the American Sportfishing Association because it shares the same problem with federal excise taxes not being collected on taxable fishing equipment sold from foreign manufacturers through internet marketplace facilitators.

ATA’s Efforts, Member Reactions

Dan Forster, ATA’s vice president and chief conservation officer, is tracking the issue, working with legislators to correct the problem, and educating members about FET slippage pitfalls and implications.

In April 2022, he authored a letter, with support from 53 other conservation organizations, to the leadership of the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means Committee that encouraged them to take corrective action against federal excise tax slippage. In September 2022, the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies passed a resolution in support of ATA, pledging assistance for rectifying the issue.

In August 2023, he met with members of the Government Accountability Office, who are currently working on a Congress-initiated study regarding FET slippage. Forster shared the archery industry’s perspective and explained how damaging the outdated collection policies are to ATA members and the industry.

In late July 2024, the GOA published a final report, recommending that Congress consider making U.S. online marketplaces responsible for sport fishing and archery excise taxes on consumer import sales in which they are involved. Their findings align with the archery industry's perspective and desired outcome, and further set the stage for a legislative fix. 

“FET slippage is unacceptable,” Forster said. “It’s not a sustainable practice that we’re going to live with. We’ll continue to press into this issue with the full benefit of community support until Congress creates a viable solution.”

ATA member Steve Greenwood, sporting goods division director for Victory Archery, is grateful for the ATA’s work on behalf of its members.

“I want to compliment Dan and the ATA,” Greenwood said. “Finally, someone is listening and doing something for it, which I very much appreciate.”

Greenwood has been in the arrow business since 1980 and started addressing FET slippage eight years ago. As online shopping grows in popularity, so does the issue and corresponding uncollected revenues. While Greenwood welcomes competition, he despises individuals who exploit the unfair system.

“Slippage is inaccurate; this is way more than FET slippage,” Greenwood said. “It’s thousands and thousands of dollars. An American company trying to do business legally in the U.S. is at an unfair playing field, and I don’t think people realize how much money is coming into the U.S. that (foreign companies) are not paying FET on.”