Congressman Dan Goldman Fights to Close Loopholes in Gun Sales Regulations
Outdated Laws Regulating Gun Sales Create Loopholes for Gun Dealers and Purchases to Exploit and Circumvent Gun Safety Laws
The ‘Federal Firearm Licensee Act’ Would Modernize and Strengthen the Regulations Governing Gun Sales
Bill Would Close the “Gun Show” Loophole, Introduce More Stringent Requirements on Gun Dealers to Prevent Firearm Trafficking
Read the Bill Here
Washington D.C – Congressman Dan Goldman joined Congresswoman Robin Kelly (IL-02) in introducing the ‘Federal Firearm Licensee Act’ to modernize and strengthen the federal requirements foranyone who facilitates gun sales, including gun shops, gun shows, and websites. This legislation would update sections in the U.S. Code directed at federal firearms licensees (FFLs) that have not been updated in 30 years.
The Federal Firearm Licensee Act would mandate “facilitators” such as gun shows or websites to run background checks on all gun sales, increase physical security requirements at gun shops, modernizing record keeping, and require dealers to inform the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) immediately if any firearms are transferred before a background check has been completed.
Current regulations permit sellers at gun shows or on online marketplaces to sell a firearm without first initiating a background check to determine whether the buyers are prohibited under applicable state or federal law. The Federal Firearm Licensee Act expands the applicability of federal firearms laws to “facilitators” of firearm sales including these sellers, closing the “Gun Show” loophole and requiring a background check on all gun sales.
“For 30 years, gun shows and web sellers have not been held to the same scrutiny and regulation as brick and mortar gun shops, allowing potentially dangerous individuals access to guns without due diligence,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “It’s long past time for Congress to bring our gun sale regulations into the 21st century. Relying on outdated laws has allowed gun traffickers and dealers to flood our streets with weapons of war and put our communities in danger. Comprehensive, effective laws that keep these weapons out of the hands of bad actors and finally introduce accountability for the gun dealers supplying them will help put an end to the scourge of gun violence in this country.”
The Tiahrt Amendments currently severely limit the ATF in its ability to disclose crime gun trace data to the public, preventing the collection of valuable information and the establishment of effective policies to prevent illegal guns from being used in crimes. By repealing these amendments, the Federal Firearms Licensee act would support law enforcement efforts and give the public vital information needed to craft the most effective policies against illegal guns.
Bad actors in the gun industry are primary sources for the flow of illegal guns. Higher standards for gun dealers can help stop the stream of weapons into communities. Between 2013 and 2017, the number of firearms stolen in gun-dealer burglaries more than doubled and the number of firearms stolen in gun-dealer robberies tripled. The Federal Firearm Licensee Act would hold gun dealers nationwide to high standards and modernize the ways in which the federal government and the ATF can hold these dealers accountable and keep communities safe.
The Federal Firearm Licensee Act also modernizes regulations for existing Federal Firearm Licensees by:
Requiring physical security measures to prevent firearm theft;
Clarifying the standards by which licensed dealers, and their employees, are assessed forpurposes of license issuance and renewal;
Repealing long-standing Appropriations Riders that have impeded enforcement of existing law by barring the ATF from using funds to require licensed dealers to conduct physical firearm inventories and prohibiting the public disclosure of firearms trace data; and
Increasing record retention and electronic data management and sharing for background checks
Congressman Dan Goldman is fighting to hold gun dealers and manufacturers are accountable for their role in perpetuating the gun violence epidemic.
In 2023, the Congressman cosponsored the ‘Responsible Firearms Marketing Act,’ which would direct the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to study the dangers of unfair and deceptive marketing and advertising practices utilized by the gun industry and the ‘Equal Justice for Victims of Gun Violence Act,’ which would ensure that victims of gun violence have their day in court, that negligent gun manufacturers are held liable when they disregard public safety, and that gun trace data can be accepted as evidence in court.
Earlier this month, Goldman cosponsored the ‘Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act,’ which would place safeguards and limitations on the sale of ammunition over the internet and the ‘Default Proceed Sale Transparency Act’ to address the 'Charleston Loophole,’ which allows some gun sales to be completed without a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) background check.
Congressman Goldman is a Vice Chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force and is Chair of the Dads Caucus Gun Violence Prevention Working Group.
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