Congressman Dan Goldman Cosponsors Package of Gun Violence Prevention Legislation

Assault Weapons Ban Would Prohibit Weapons Used in Eight of 10 Deadliest Mass Shootings in Recent American History

Bipartisan Background Checks Act Would Require Every Sale of a Firearm Include a Background Check

'Ethan’s Law’ Would Require Safe Storage to Protect Children and Others From Unsecured Firearms

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) this week cosponsored three pieces of critically important gun violence prevention legislation. The Assault Weapons Ban would have prohibited the weapons used in eight of the 10 deadliest mass shootings in recent American history. The Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2023 is a commonsense piece of legislation supported by more than 90 percent of both Democrats and Republicans in America that would require that every sale of a firearm include a background check. ‘Ethan’s Law’ would require gun owners to safely and securely store their firearms and establish strong penalties for violations. 

“Gun violence is a public health emergency that takes the lives of far too many Americans every day,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “Banning assault weapons, mandating common-sense background checks, and ensuring that firearms are safely stored and out of reach of minors are all critical pieces of the comprehensive approach we need to tackle this issue. As a Vice Chair of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, I won’t rest until we have realized a future for our children that is free from the scourge of gun violence.” 

Assault Weapons Ban

In mass shootings, six times as many people are shot when an assault weapon is used. In 2022, there were more mass shootings – over 600 – than days in the year. This included the horrific mass murders carried out in Buffalo, where a gunman used a lawfully purchased assault weapon to murder 10 people at a grocery store; in Uvalde, where a gunman used a legally purchased assault rifle to enter a school and kill 19 children and two teachers; and in Colorado Springs, where a gunman opened fire with an assault rifle inside an LGBTQ+ nightclub, murdering five people. These massacres make up only a tiny fraction of lives lost to these weapons. 

These weapons would not have been permitted to be legally purchased had the Assault Weapons Ban been law. These weapons were designed for the military specifically to kill as many people as possible in as little time as possible. They are weapons of war and have no place in our communities. 

The Assault Weapons Ban, which would prohibit the sale, transfer, manufacture, and importation of semiautomatic weapons and ammunition feeding devices capable of accepting more than fifteen rounds, while protecting hunting and sporting rifles and assault weapons used by members of the military and law enforcement. This legislation improves upon the previous Assault Weapons Ban and existing state bans by prohibiting duplicates or altered facsimiles with semiautomatic capabilities and prohibiting the importation of assault weapons and large-capacity magazines.

According to a 2021 Data for Progress poll, 61 percent of Americans support banning the manufacture, sale, and possession of assault rifles. Eight of the ten deadliest mass shootings in recent American history have involved an assault weapon that would have been banned for purchase under the previous Assault Weapons Ban, which expired in 2004. Since the Assault Weapons Ban lapsed, the U.S. has seen the number of mass shootings and fatalities increase as the popularity of military-style assault weapons has grown.

The Assault Weapons ban is sponsored by Congressman David Cicilline (RI-1).

Read the bill here.

Bipartisan Background Checks Act

Current law requires every federally licensed dealer to run a background check on every gun they sell. There is proof these background checks work. Every day, background checks stop more than 160 felons and some 50 domestic abusers from getting a gun from a federally licensed dealer. Unfortunately, in some states, those same prohibited purchasers can go to an unlicensed dealer and get a firearm without a background check.

The Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2023 is a commonsense approach supported by more than 90 percent of both Democrats and Republicans in America. The bill would require that every sale of a firearm include a background check. The bill includes small, technical exemptions for family transfers and temporary hunting transfers. The bill has the support of every major gun violence prevention advocacy and grassroots organization.

The Bipartisan Background Checks Act is sponsored by Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-1) and Congressman Mike Thompson (CA-4).

Read the bill here.

“Ethan’s Law”

Under Ethan’s Law, gun owners would be required to secure their firearms in a “secure gun storage or safety device” if a minor is likely to gain access to the firearm without permission, or if a resident of the dwelling cannot legally possess a firearm under existing law. The bill also includes incentives for states to pass and enforce their own safe gun storage laws. 

Named in honor of Ethan Song, a teenager from Guilford, Connecticut who was tragically killed in 2018 by an unsecured gun in a neighbor’s home, the bill would create federal requirements for safe gun storage and establish strong penalties for any violations. With loaded and unlocked guns in the homes of an estimated 4.6 million American minors and killing or injuring eight children or teens every day, Ethan’s Law would reduce access to these unsupervised firearms often used in suicides, school shootings, and other acts of violence.

Last year, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Ethan’s Law as part of the Protecting Our Kids Act, a broader legislative package focused on addressing America’s gun violence epidemic. 24 states already have some form of safe storage or child access prevention laws already on the books. 

Ethan’s Law is also endorsed by over 180 gun violence prevention and law enforcement advocacy groups, including the Newtown Action Alliance, Giffords, Everytown for Gun Safety, Brady: United Against Gun Violence, the Major Cities Chiefs Association, Sandy Hook Promise, and March For Our Lives.  

Ethan’s Law was introduced by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3).

Read the bill here.

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