Congressman Dan Goldman Pushes to Ban 'Ghost Guns'
Prevalence of 'Ghost Guns,' Firearms Assembled from ‘Do-It-Yourself' Gun Making Kits, Increased by Over 1000 Percent in Five Years
Kits and Blueprints to Create Guns Without Serial Numbers are Often Purchased from Unlicensed Sellers, Undetectable by Law Enforcement
Lack of Regulation Currently Allows Buyers to Circumvent Background Check Requirements to Obtain Firearms
Read the Bill Here
Washington, DC – Congressman Dan Goldman (NY-10) joined Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) in introducing the Ghost Guns and Untraceable Firearms Act. The bill would ban the sale of “ghost guns” – unserialized and untraceable firearms that can be bought online and easily assembled at home without having to pass a background check.
The Ghost Guns and Untraceable Firearms Act would permanently define the core building blocks of ghost guns – unfinished frames and receivers – as firearms, requiring manufacturers and distributors to obtain licensing, put serial numbers on unassembled gun parts, and require purchasers to undergo the same background checks as those buying preassembled weapons.
“A homemade gun is still a gun, and loopholes in our laws have allowed these untraceable weapons to infiltrate our communities for far too long,” Congressman Dan Goldman said. “As technology advances, our laws must do the same to keep our communities and children safe. All firearms, regardless of whether they are purchased fully assembled, constructed from DIY gun kits, or 3-D printed in parts, have the ability to destroy lives and devastate families. In the fight against the leading cause of death for children in the United States, regulating these untraceable guns must be a priority for this Congress.”
The use of ghost guns across the country has been dramatically increasing. According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the number of ghost guns recovered and traced by law enforcement went from 1,629 in 2016 to 19,273 in 2021 – a more than 1,000 percent increase.
Amongst other measures, the Ghost Guns and Untraceable Firearms Act would require online sellers, as well as gun kit manufacturers and distributors to comply with the same federal regulations that govern the production and distribution of completed firearms.
Combating gun violence and holding gun manufacturers accountable are foundational to Congressman Goldman’s work to make our communities safer. This month, Congressman Goldman cosponsored a package of legislation that both establishes a federal “red flag” program and strengthens state and local efforts to support the implementation of extreme risk protection order laws.
The Congressman also cosponsored the ‘End Gun Violence Act’ to prohibit individuals convicted of a violent misdemeanor from purchasing handguns or ammunition for five years after conviction and called for a national 3-day waiting period on all handgun sales in the ‘COOL OFF’ Act.
Congressman Goldman is a Vice Chair of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force and was recently named as Chair of the Dads Caucus Gun Violence Prevention Working Group.
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