- 1975 -1978 – US Army – Captain, 1st Cavalry
- 2008 – 2019 – President and CEO – National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF)
- 1980 – 2008 – Sturm, Ruger – President, CEO, Vice-Chairman of the Board
About Stephen L. Sanetti
Stephen L. “Steve” Sanetti is one of the best-known executives in the American firearms industry. Bill Ruger hired him in 1980 as Sturm, Ruger & Co.’s first general counsel, and he rose through the company’s executive ranks to become president, chief operating officer and vice chairman of the board in 2003. During the late 1990s he was a founding member of the Firearms Litigation Support Committee and helped coordinate the industry’s response to the wave of municipal lawsuits filed against gun makers.
On May 1, 2008, Sanetti left Ruger to become president and CEO of the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the firearms industry’s trade association and the organizer of the annual SHOT Show. Under his leadership NSSF became a prominent industry voice on legislation, safety programs and hunting and shooting participation. In September 2018 Joseph Bartozzi joined NSSF as president, and Sanetti continued as CEO until he retired on December 31, 2019. For gun owners, his career shows how much of the legal and political defense of the right to keep and bear arms has been carried by the companies and trade groups that make and sell firearms.
Key Facts
- 1980: Hired as Sturm, Ruger & Co.’s first general counsel
- 2003: Named Ruger president, chief operating officer and vice chairman
- Late 1990s: Founding member of the Firearms Litigation Support Committee
- May 1, 2008: Became president and CEO of NSSF
- September 10, 2018: Joseph Bartozzi became NSSF president, with Sanetti remaining CEO
- December 31, 2019: Retired as NSSF CEO
