[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3139 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3139

 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase the excise tax 
   on firearms and to earmark the increase for juvenile justice and 
                    delinquency prevention programs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 25, 1999

 Mr. Kennedy of Rhode Island (for himself, Mrs. McCarthy of New York, 
 Mr. Tierney, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi, Mr. Serrano, Ms. Millender-
   McDonald, and Mr. Payne) introduced the following bill; which was 
  referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the 
 Committees on Education and the Workforce, and Commerce, for a period 
    to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase the excise tax 
   on firearms and to earmark the increase for juvenile justice and 
                    delinquency prevention programs.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Gun Excise Tax Funds to Prevention 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Medical costs are a substantial burden to society. For 
        example, the cost for acute care and followup treatment of 
        gunshot injuries in 1994 in the United States was 
        $2,300,000,000, of which $1,100,000,000 was paid by government 
        programs, according to an article in the Journal of the 
        American Medical Association.
            (2) The mean medical cost per gunshot injury is about 
        $17,000.
            (3) For hospital-admitted survivors of gunshot injuries, 
        estimates suggest that Federal, State, or local government is 
        the primary payer of medical costs of the injuries in 44 
        percent of the cases.
            (4) The excise tax on firearms and ammunition has not 
        changed in 60 years.
            (5) This excise tax has raised more than $2,600,000,000 
        during that time.
            (6) Congress needs to ensure that the revenue raised by 
        this excise tax is used for the proper purposes.

SEC. 3. INCREASE IN EXCISE TAX ON FIREARMS.

    (a) In General.--Section 4181 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
(relating to tax on firearms) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``10 percent'' and inserting ``15 
        percent'', and
            (2) by striking ``11 percent'' and inserting ``16 
        percent''.
    (b) Retention of Prior Rate for Taxable Sales to Government.--
Section 4182 of such Code is amended by adding at the end the following 
new subsection:
    ``(d) Sales to Government.--Except as provided in subsection (b), 
in the case of a sale for the use by the United States, a State, or a 
political subdivision of a State (or any department, agency, or 
instrumentality of any of the foregoing), the tax imposed by section 
4181 shall be determined by substituting ``10 percent'' for ``15 
percent'' and ``11 percent'' for ``16 percent''.
    (c) Use of Proceeds of Excise Tax.--Subchapter A of chapter 98 of 
subtitle I such Code is amended by adding at the end the following new 
sections:

``SEC. 9511. DELINQUENCY PREVENTION TRUST FUND.

    ``(a) Creation of Trust Fund.--There is established in the Treasury 
of the United States a trust fund to be known as the `Delinquency 
Prevention Trust Fund', consisting of such amounts as may be 
apportioned or credited to such Trust Fund as provided in this section 
or section 9602(b).
    ``(b) Transfers to Trust Fund.--
            ``(1) In general.--There are hereby appropriated to the 
        Delinquency Prevention Trust Fund amounts equivalent to half of 
        the net revenues received in the Treasury from the tax imposed 
        by section 4181 (relating to tax on firearms), to the extent 
        attributable to a tax rate greater than 10 percent, in the case 
        of pistols and revolvers, and greater than 11 percent, in the 
        case of firearms (other than pistols and revolvers), shells, 
        and cartridges.
            ``(2) Net revenues.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the 
        term `net revenues' means the amount estimated by the Secretary 
        based on the excess of--
                    ``(A) the taxes received in the Treasury under 
                section 4181 (relating to tax on firearms), over
                    ``(B) the decrease in the tax imposed by chapter 1 
                resulting from the tax imposed by section 4181.
    ``(c) Expenditures.--Amounts in the Delinquency Prevention Trust 
Fund shall be available, as provided in appropriation Acts, only for 
carrying out the purposes of title V of the Juvenile Justice and 
Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5781 et seq.) (relating 
to incentive grants for local delinquency prevention programs).
    ``(d) Coordination With Other Funds.--So much of the rate of tax as 
is taken into account in determining amounts appropriated to the 
Delinquency Prevention Trust Fund shall not be taken into account in 
determining amounts deposited into any other fund.

``SEC. 9512. EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES FOR CHILDREN TRUST FUND.

    ``(a) Creation of Trust Fund.--There is established in the Treasury 
of the United States a trust fund to be known as the `Emergency Medical 
Services for Children Trust Fund', consisting of such amounts as may be 
apportioned or credited to such Trust Fund as provided in this section 
or section 9602(b).
    ``(b) Transfers to Trust Fund.--
            ``(1) In general.--There are hereby appropriated to the 
        Emergency Medical Services for Children Trust Fund amounts 
        equivalent to half of the net revenues received in the Treasury 
        from the tax imposed by section 4181 (relating to tax on 
        firearms), to the extent attributable to a tax rate greater 
        than 10 percent, in the case of pistols and revolvers, and 
        greater than 11 percent, in the case of firearms (other than 
        pistols and revolvers), shells, and cartridges.
            ``(2) Net revenues.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the 
        term `net revenues' means the amount estimated by the Secretary 
        based on the excess of--
                    ``(A) the taxes received in the Treasury under 
                section 4181 (relating to tax on firearms), over
                    ``(B) the decrease in the tax imposed by chapter 1 
                resulting from the tax imposed by section 4181.
    ``(c) Expenditures.--Amounts in the Emergency Medical Services for 
Children Trust Fund shall be available, as provided in appropriation 
Acts, only for carrying out the purposes of the Emergency Medical 
Services for Children program (administered by the Department of Health 
and Human Services and the National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration).
    ``(d) Coordination With Other Funds.--So much of the rate of tax as 
is taken into account in determining amounts appropriated to the 
Emergency Medical Services for Children Trust Fund shall not be taken 
into account in determining amounts deposited into any other fund.''.
    (d) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for subchapter A of 
chapter 98 of subtitle I of such Code is amended by inserting after the 
item relating to section 9510 the following new items:

                              ``Sec. 9511. Delinquency Prevention Trust 
                                        Fund.
                              ``Sec. 9512. Emergency Medical Services 
                                        for Children Trust Fund.''.
    (e) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this Act shall apply to 
sales after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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