Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Beretta Group Pledges $1 million to Benefit the NRA Institute for Legislative Action and Civil Rights Defense Fund

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

New Pledge Brings Beretta’s Support to over $2 million 

FAIRFAX, VA – The National Rifle Association (NRA) announced today that the Beretta Group of companies, led by Beretta U.S.A., Benelli U.S.A., and Burris in the United States have pledged to give the NRA $1 million over the next five years. This gift will benefit the NRA Institute for Legislative Action and the NRA Civil Rights Defense Fund’s litigation activities to further expand the scope of Second Amendment protections in the wake of the recent United States Supreme Court ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller. 

The announcement was made by Cav. Ugo Gussalli Beretta at an event at his home in Clinton, Maryland, on August 20.   At this event, Cav. Beretta was inducted into the NRA’s Golden Ring of Freedom, the highest level of the Association’s comprehensive donor recognition society.  This new pledge brings the Beretta Group’s gift commitments to the NRA to over $2 million.  Previous gifts have benefited the NRA Institute for Legislative Action, NRA Youth Programs, Hunting and Wildlife Conservation, and the National Firearms Museum. 

Wayne LaPierre, NRA Executive Vice President remarked, “The Beretta Group is legendary in the industry and an important member of the NRA family.  We are truly grateful for Cav. Beretta’s vision and leadership.  The Beretta Group and the NRA are natural partners when it comes to protecting our Second Amendment freedoms and this gift will have great impact in the months and years ahead.” 

The NRA Institute for Legislative Action mobilizes millions of volunteers nationwide on behalf of candidates who support our Second Amendment freedom, and has the most effective “ground game” in the country during an election year.   The Civil Rights Defense Fund, the NRA’s sister 501(c)3 organization, supports litigation involving significant legal issues relating to the right to keep and bear arms. 

“The Beretta Group’s support could not come at a more critical time,” said Chris Cox, Executive Director of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action.  “Cav. Beretta understands the immediate challenges to our shared values and has literally reached around the globe to strengthen our position in this fight.” 

Beretta U.S.A. is part of the Beretta Holding Group. Controlled by the Beretta family, the group encompasses key manufacturers of field and competition firearms and optics, as well as trading and distribution companies in Italy and abroad including Benelli, Franchi and Uberti in Italy, and Sako and Tikka in Finland. The oldest among them, Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A. (Pietro Beretta arms manufacturing company), which has been handed down over fifteen generations, was active in the village of Gardone Val Trompia in the fifteenth century.  Documentary evidence for the family business dates back to 1526.  Cav. Ugo Gussalli Beretta and his sons, Pietro and Franco, run the company today. 

To learn more about opportunities to make a gift to the NRA, contact Nicole Capossela, Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations, NRA Office of Advancement, (703) 267-1122 or visit www.nragive.com.  To learn more about the Beretta Group, visit www.beretta.com.

- 30 -

TRENDING NOW
Canadian Criminologist: “Almost All of the U.S. is Safer than Toronto”

News  

Monday, June 15, 2026

Canadian Criminologist: “Almost All of the U.S. is Safer than Toronto”

Canada’s Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney recently defended his government’s gun confiscation and “buyback” program, stating the government “has acted swiftly and decisively to combat gun crime” by removing “prohibited assault-style firearms from communities across ...

New York’s Penn Station: “Sensitive Place” or a “Disgusting” “Hellhole”?

News  

Monday, June 15, 2026

New York’s Penn Station: “Sensitive Place” or a “Disgusting” “Hellhole”?

Another week, another grotesque act of violence in one of New York’s least sensitive places.

Credibility Crisis Facing Violence Interruption Programs Continues

News  

Monday, June 15, 2026

Credibility Crisis Facing Violence Interruption Programs Continues

Few things expose the hypocrisy of anti-gun activists and their allies more clearly than the recurring spectacle of so-called “violence interrupters” and their own violent tendencies. The story has become repetitive but worth reiterating because ...

UN Officials Declare “We Have Lawyers” After Forcing Through Another Controversial Small Arms Outcome Document

News  

Wednesday, June 10, 2026

UN Officials Declare “We Have Lawyers” After Forcing Through Another Controversial Small Arms Outcome Document

The United Nations’ Ninth Biennial Meeting of States to Consider the Implementation of the Program of Action to Prevent, Combat, and Eradicate the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light Weapons in All Its Aspects ...

Up Next for DOJ’s Second Amendment Section: Philadelphia

News  

Monday, June 15, 2026

Up Next for DOJ’s Second Amendment Section: Philadelphia

Harmeet Dhillon, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice (DOJ), has been doing yeoman’s work in the defense of the Second Amendment.

NRA Files Lawsuit Challenging Michigan’s License-to-Purchase Regime

Monday, June 15, 2026

NRA Files Lawsuit Challenging Michigan’s License-to-Purchase Regime

The National Rifle Association, Michigan Coalition for Responsible Gun Owners, Michigan Gun Owners, Michigan Open Carry, and four NRA members filed a lawsuit challenging Michigan’s firearm license-to-purchase and registration regime.

Virginia: Court Reiterates Injunction on Private Sale Ban, as Anti-Gun Lawmakers Mislead Public

News  

Monday, June 8, 2026

Virginia: Court Reiterates Injunction on Private Sale Ban, as Anti-Gun Lawmakers Mislead Public

Last October, a judge in the Circuit Court for the City of Richmond ruled in the case Raul Wilson, Wyatt Lowman, Virginia Citizens Defense League, Gun Owners of America, Inc, and Gun Owners Foundation v. ...

California: Multiple Anti-Gun Bills Scheduled in Committee

Tuesday, June 9, 2026

California: Multiple Anti-Gun Bills Scheduled in Committee

On Tuesday, June 16th,the Senate Public Safety Committee will hear several anti-Second Amendment bills, including AB1743, AB1753, and AB1810. Additionally, on June 23rd, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hear AB 2047, a proposal that effectively ...

Massachusetts: Sunday Hunting Stripped from Budget

Thursday, June 11, 2026

Massachusetts: Sunday Hunting Stripped from Budget

House democrats have stripped provisions from the budget bill, H.D. 6042, that would have ended the Commonwealth’s ban on Sunday hunting, in addition to expanding land access and increasing opportunities for crossbow hunting. 

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.