www.odcmp.com

Welcome to the CMP

The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) is a national organization dedicated to training and educating U. S. citizens in responsible uses of firearms and airguns through gun safety training, marksmanship training and competitions. The CMP is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) corporation that places its highest priority on serving youth through gun safety and marksmanship activities that encourage personal growth and build life skills. Links on this page will lead you to more detailed information about the CMP and its programs.

STATUTORY MISSION. The federal law enacted in 1996 (Title 36 U. S. Code, §40701-40733) that created the Corporation for the Promotion of Rifle Practice and Firearms Safety, Inc. (CPRPFS, the formal legal name of the CMP) mandates these key “functions” for the corporation:

(1) To instruct citizens of the United States in marksmanship;

(2) To promote practice and safety in the use of firearms;

(3) To conduct competitions in the use of firearms and to award trophies, prizes, badges, and other insignia to competitors.

The law specifically states: In carrying out the Civilian Marksmanship Program, the corporation shall give priority to activities that benefit firearms safety, training, and competition for youth and that reach as many youth participants as possible.

CMP MISSION AND VISION. The mission and vision statements adopted by the CMP Board of Directors derive from its statutory mission and reflect the organization’s commitment to gun safety, marksmanship skill and youth.

The mission of the Civilian Marksmanship Program is to promote firearms safety and marksmanship training for U.S. citizens with an emphasis on youth.

The vision of the Civilian Marksmanship Program is that every youth in America has the opportunity to participate in firearms safety and marksmanship programs.

HISTORY OF THE CMP. CMP history goes back to late 19th century efforts by U.S. military and political leaders to strengthen our country’s national defense capabilities by improving the rifle marksmanship skills of members of the Armed Forces. The CMP traces its direct lineage to 1903 when Congress and President Theodore Roosevelt established the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice (NBPRP) and the National Matches. From then until 1996, first the Department of War and later the Department of the Army managed the program that became known as the “civilian marksmanship program.” During this period, program objectives shifted from military marksmanship to training civilians who might serve in the military to developing youth through marksmanship training. In 1996, Congress acted again to establish the Corporation for the Promotion of Rifle Practice and Firearm Safety that now governs the CMP.

CMP GUN SAFETY PROGRAMS. The CMP is a national leader in promoting gun safety. The CMP believes that gun safety training is the foremost means of ensuring the safe and responsible use of firearms and airguns. Every CMP program has a safety component that includes safety doctrine, safety training and safety controls.

• GUN SAFETY FLAGS. Participants in all youth and adult CMP training and competition activities are required to use safety flags in their rifles or pistols before and after firing to confirm the safe condition of the guns being used.

• SAFETY TRAINING CLASSES. All CMP training courses include classes on gun safety and safe range procedures.

• JROTC MARKSMANSHIP PROGRAMS. The CMP developed the safety training curriculum now used by the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force JROTC rifle marksmanship programs and trained 3,500 JROTC instructors to teach this course to JROTC cadets since 2005.

Information about upcoming CMP instructional clinics is posted at http://clubs.odcmp.com/cgi-bin/matchUpcomingSearch.cgi?designation=CLINIC.

• GUN CLUB INSTRUCTIONAL CLINICS. The CMP developed the safety training curriculum used by its 5,000 CMP-affiliated gun clubs and has trained more than 600 master instructors to teach marksmanship clinics with CMP safety training.

• COMPETITION RULES. The CMP is the national governing body for several shooting sports disciplines. Safety is a principal concern in the rules and procedures that govern every CMP competition.

• RIFLE PURCHASERS. Purchasers of CMP government surplus rifles are required to show proof of participation in a marksmanship related activity or otherwise show familiarity with the safe handling of firearms and range procedures.

• GUN SAFETY LOCKS. The CMP makes gun safety locks available with every firearm it sells through its government surplus rifle sales program.

YOUTH PROGRAMS. The CMP is a national leader in providing instructional materials, training leaders and organizing competition events that enable youth to participate in safe marksmanship activities. CMP youth marksmanship programs include:

• JROTC MARKSMANSHIP. The CMP cooperates with the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force JROTC Commands to provide the marksmanship training and competition programs that are used by 2,500 JROTC units throughout the nation.

• NATIONAL THREE-POSITION AIR RIFLE COUNCIL. The CMP partners with The American Legion, BSA-Venturing, National 4-H Shooting Sports, the U. S. Army Marksmanship Unit, USA Shooting (national governing body for Olympic shooting) and the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force JROTC Commands to govern almost all sanctioned youth air rifle competitions in the U. S.

  Information on the CMP Camp Riflery program is found at http://www.odcmp.com/ CRProgram.htm.

• LOCAL YOUTH MARKSMANSHIP PROGRAMS. 85 percent of the CMP’s 5,200 affiliated gun clubs and local youth organizations offer gun safety and youth marksmanship instruction that utilize CMP training materials and supplies to youth in their communities.

• JUNIOR RIFLE CAMPS. The CMP provides a summer-long series of youth shooting sports camps to give advanced training to 500 youth and their adult leaders.

• CAMP RIFLERY. The CMP is a national leader in providing instructional material specifically designed for youth BB gun, air rifle and smallbore rifle marksmanship in summer camp settings.

• RIFLES AND AMMUNITION. The CMP subsidizes the sale of rifles suitable for instructing beginning shooters so that camps, 4-H clubs and junior rifle clubs can acquire affordable equipment for their programs.

CMP SUPPORT FOR THE ARMED FORCES AND U.S. GOVERNMENT. Prior to 1996, the Army’s Office of the Director of Civilian Marksmanship received an annual federal appropriation, but since its establishment as a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) corporation in 1996, the CMP has received no government appropriations. The CMP retains a reporting relationship to the Department of the Army and submits an Annual Report to the Secretary of the Army. The CMP reimburses the U.S. Government for all costs it incurs in transferring government surplus rifles and other property that are sold through the CMP Sales program. The CMP not only now receives no taxpayer support, but it actually expends over one million dollars per year in providing funding, staffing and additional resources to support U. S. Army and other Armed Services marksmanship programs. The new CMP is providing financial support to the U.S. Government. Government programs supported by the CMP include:
 

• Army SDM Instructor Training. The CMP provides funding and equipment that enable 90 expert, civilian volunteers to augment U. S. Army Marksmanship Unit instructors. These Army-CMP teams now train 500 Army NCOs a year as Squad Designated Marksmen Instructors.

• JROTC Marksmanship Training. The CMP provides curriculum design and materials and JROTC instructor training for the Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Air Force JROTC programs at no cost to the JROTC Commands. The CMP has trained over 3,500 JROTC instructors through this program.

• JROTC Marksmanship Competition. The CMP administers the JROTC air rifle competition programs with events at the local, service and national levels, again at no cost to the JROTC Commands. 8,000 JROTC cadets now participate in these annual competitions.

• ROTC Scholarships. The CMP awards 100 $1000 college scholarships a year to qualified ROTC students.

• Ceremonial Rifle Repair. The CMP provides staff coordination, repair parts and volunteer armorer services to repair ceremonial rifles used by veterans’ organizations.

• Camp Perry Infrastructure. The CMP has provided over three million dollars in funding to upgrade facilities and infrastructure at Camp Perry, Ohio, the Ohio National Guard installation where CMP program activities are headquartered.

Information on CMP sales programs is found at http://www.thecmp.org.

CMP RIFLE SALES. The federal law that established the CMP authorizes it to sell surplus military .22 rimfire and .30 cal. rifles and ammunition to qualified U. S. citizens who are members of gun clubs affiliated with the CMP. All purchasers must provide proof of having received gun safety or marksmanship training and pass an FBI NICS check. The principal rifles sold through this program have been WWII era M1 Garand rifles and WWI era M1903 rifles. The law mandates that proceeds from these sales “may be used only to support the Civilian Marksmanship Program.” Each year since its establishment in 1996, the CMP has produced an excess of revenues over expenses to fund its firearm safety, marksmanship training and competition programs and an endowment that will support future programs.

 

NATIONAL MATCHES. The law that created the CMP calls for “an annual competition called the National Matches and consisting of rifle and pistol matches…shall be held.” The National Matches were first held in 1903, moved to Camp Perry, Ohio, in 1907 and continue to take place every summer at Camp Perry. The National Matches have become a huge, national shooting sports festival with well over 6,000 annual participants. School students and competition event shooters range from beginners to many of the world’s best. The National Matches include Small Arms Firing Schools that are mandated by law and a series of CMP National Trophy Rifle and Pistol Matches as well as several National Rifle Association national championships that are “held in connection with the National Matches.” The CMP fulfills its responsibility to conduct the National Matches by working with a partnership that includes the Ohio National Guard and the NRA.

COMPETITION GOVERNANCE. In addition to being a lead organization in the annual conduct of the National Matches, the CMP is the national governing body for several shooting sport disciplines that include Service Rifle and Pistol, As-Issued Military Rifle, Rimfire Sporter and National Match Air Rifle. The CMP provides competition rules and sanctioning services for events in each of these disciplines. It now sanctions over one thousand local and regional competitions a year in these disciplines. The CMP pioneered in developing its Competition Tracker system that applies computer and Internet technology to manage its database of competitors and manage competitions. Competition Tracker was the first such system in the world to support the live posting of competition results on the Internet. The CMP is also the custodian of the Distinguished Badge program that was initiated by the U. S. Army in 1884. Since Distinguished Badges are awards inaugurated by the U. S. Government, they are especially prestigious and coveted.
 

CMP MARKSMANSHIP TRAINING CENTERS. In order to provide a base of operations for its youth and adult training and competition programs, the CMP recently established marksmanship training centers at both its program headquarters at Camp Perry, Ohio and at its sales headquarters at Anniston, Alabama. Both facilities feature 80 firing point air gun ranges with state-of-the-art electronic targets and display systems. These facilities are regarded as the finest Olympic-class air gun ranges in the Western Hemisphere.

CMP GOVERNANCE AND LEADERSHIP. The CMP is governed by a Board of Directors made up of eleven members who have extensive experience and leadership credentials in military and business. The President of the Board serves as the Chief Executive Officer. The Director of Civilian Marksmanship manages day-to-day operation of CMP training and competition programs at CMP North headquarters at Camp Perry, Ohio. The Chief Operating Officer directs CMP sales programs at CMP South headquarters in Anniston, Alabama.