Presidential Action on Gun Control
While details are still emerging, President Obama has said that he will announce a gun control initiative this week, with a television town hall planned for Thursday evening. (Read more from CNN.)
We at POPVOX are working to help you weigh in on the proposal, with a "non-bill action" that will send your comments not just to Congress, but also to the White House. We will have more information on that once the proposal is unveiled. Be sure to check the POPVOX blog throughout the week for more details. If you work with an organization that will release a statement or conduct a campaign on the proposal, get in touch for more information.
Many bills have been introduced in Congress regarding gun control, background checks, and Second Amendment rights. Here is a sample of those bills, with excerpts from the official bill summaries. Click through to see what others are saying and tell Congress what you think.
THE DENYING FIREARMS AND EXPLOSIVES TO DANGEROUS TERRORISTS ACT -- S. 551 and H.R. 1076 Bipartisan
Sponsors: Sen. Dianne Feinstein [D, CA] and Rep. Peter King [R, NY-2]
A bill to "deny the transfer of a firearm or the issuance of a firearms or explosives license or permit (or revoke such license or permit) if the Attorney General: (1) determines that the transferee is known (or appropriately suspected) to be engaged in terrorism or has provided material support or resources for terrorism, and (2) has a reasonable belief that the transferee may use a firearm in connection with terrorism. Allows any individual whose firearms or explosives license application has been denied to bring legal action to challenge the denial."
S. 874: THE SECOND AMENDMENT ENFORCEMENT ACT
Sponsor: Sen. Marco Rubio [R, FL]
Denies the District of Columbia any authority to enact laws or regulations that discourage or eliminate the private ownership or use of firearms for legitimate purposes; repeals current Firearms Control Regulations Act (FCRA) definition of a machine gun as any firearm designed to shoot more than 12 shots without manual reloading; repeals the ban on semiautomatic weapons; and the District's registration requirement for possession of firearms, eliminates criminal penalties for possession of unregistered firearms... among other provisions
H.R. 2380: GUN SHOW LOOPHOLE CLOSING ACT OF 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Carolyn Maloney [D, NY-12]
Make
it unlawful for any person to operate a gun show unless such person: (1) has attained 21 years of age; (2) is not prohibited from transporting, shipping, or receiving firearms and has not violated any federal firearms requirements; (3) has registered with the Attorney General as a gun show operator and has provided a photograph and fingerprints; (4) has not concealed material information nor made false statements in connection with a gun show operator registration; and (5) notifies the Attorney General of the date, time, and duration of a gun show not later than 30 days before the commencement of such show and verifies the identity of each vendor at the gun show.
H.R. 3051: BACKGROUND CHECK COMPLETION ACT
Sponsor: Rep. James Clyburn [D, SC-6]
To eliminate the requirement that a firearms dealer transfer a firearm if the national instant criminal background check system has been unable to complete a background check of the prospective transferee within 3 business days.
H.R. 2994: SAFER COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2015
Sponsor: Rep. Mike Thompson [D, CA-5]
To protect individuals by strengthening the Nation's mental health infrastructure, improving the understanding of violence, strengthening firearm prohibitions and protections for at-risk individuals, and improving and expanding the reporting of mental health records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.
H.R. 4269: ASSAULT WEAPONS BAN OF 2015
Sponsor: Rep. David Cicilline [D, RI-1]
To regulate assault weapons, to ensure that the right to keep and bear arms is not unlimited, and for other purposes.