A Hearst Media investigation has found that in the past two years, the Newtown-based National Shooting Sports Foundation, located just a few miles away from Sandy Hook Elementary School, outspent the National Rifle Association on lobbying to prevent expanded background checks and protect immunity for gun manufacturers.

The NSSF is now a leading lobbyist for gun rights – opposing virtually all efforts to limit access to guns. According to the report, the NSSF spent $2.9 million on lobbying in 2015. The NRA spent $2.75 million.

According to The Connecticut Post, the NSSF started actively lobbying for gun manufacturing in the 1990s.

From the report:

Along with NRA, NSSF lobbied successfully for passage of the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act, which immunized the gun industry unless plaintiffs could prove negligence or design defects. But the battle was just getting started. The expiration of the 1994 assault-weapons ban opened up new terrain for military-style AR-15-type weaponry, which the industry and NSSF euphemistically call the “modern sporting rifle." The wave of mass shootings put the industry on the defensive, especially those such as Columbine, Aurora and Newtown that involved semi-automatic rifles.
In a statement on Wednesday, U.S. Senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal said the NSSF’s priorities are out of step with the views of law abiding gun owners. They said they’ll double down on a push for common sense reforms to reduce gun violence.