You can even buy a fully functional tank with a functional cannon if you're willing to wait 6-9 months and pay $200 to the ATF for a destructive device (gun which fires a round >.5' in diameter) tax stamp. In 2015, 126 tracked armored vehicles ( most likely M113 tracked APCs) were returned to the government when they were banned, but it's not clear how many have been sold to local law enforcement since they were re-legalized in 2017.Įvery 'tank' (wheeled and tracked APC) the police owns can be delivered to your door without any permits or paperwork. communication equipment) are removed prior to transfer to law enforcement agencies. Also, aircraft and vehicles available in the program are “demilitarized,” meaning that any specific military technology (e.g. tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, armed drones) crew served/large caliber (.50 cal or greater) weapons and ammunition military uniforms body armor Kevlar helmets and explosives or pyrotechnics of any kind. The 1033 program allows police to buy military surplus vehicles, but specifically prohibits the following:Īny aircraft, vessels or vehicles that inherently contain weaponry, (e.g. There are ~70+ of these documented to be currently in use by police, according to the wikipedia page.įederal law enforcement like the FBI and ATF do own fully functional tanks, as do the US military. One of the more common non-tanks is the Lenco Bearcat which costs ~$300,000/each. If you read the articles, it turns out they're not talking about actual tanks, with treads and artillery cannons, they're talking about armored personnel carriers which never carried cannons, usually driven with wheels rather than treads. When you look up ' police own tanks', several articles come up:

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