[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2732 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2732

To provide for a grant program for handgun licensing programs, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 11, 2015

 Mr. Van Hollen (for himself, Ms. Esty, Ms. Kelly of Illinois, and Ms. 
   DeLauro) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for a grant program for handgun licensing programs, and for 
                            other purposes.

    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 ``Handgun Purchaser Licensing Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds as follows:
            (1) In 2013, almost 90 percent of the nearly 9,000 firearm 
        homicides in the United States occurred with a handgun.
            (2) Recently published research by top national experts, 
        notably on Missouri and Connecticut handgun purchaser licensing 
        laws, have estimated that Missouri's repeal of its handgun 
        purchaser licensing law led to a 25 percent increase in firearm 
        homicide rates while Connecticut's adoption of its handgun 
        purchaser licensing law led to a 40 percent decrease in firearm 
        homicide rates.
            (3) In States which have had effective handgun purchaser 
        licensing laws for decades, such as Connecticut, Massachusetts, 
        New Jersey, and New York, the vast majority of guns traced to 
        crimes originated in other States, which supports the need for 
        handgun purchaser licensing laws in every state.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act, the terms ``Attorney General'' and ``handgun'' have 
the meanings given those terms in section 921(a) of title 18, United 
States Code.

SEC. 4. GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED FOR HANDGUN LICENSING.

    (a) In General.--The Attorney General is authorized to award grants 
to States, units of local government, and Indian tribes for the 
development, implementation, and evaluation of handgun purchaser 
licensing requirements.
    (b) Program Authorized.--From the amounts appropriated to carry out 
this Act and not later than 90 days after such amounts are 
appropriated, the Attorney General shall award grants, on a competitive 
basis, to eligible applicants whose applications are approved under 
subsection (c) to assist such applicants in implementing and improving 
handgun purchaser licensing programs.
    (c) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this Act, 
a State, unit of local government, or Indian tribe shall submit to the 
Attorney General an application at such time, in such manner, and 
containing such information as the Attorney General may require, 
including--
            (1) a description of the law that the applicant has enacted 
        to require a license for any purchase of a handgun including a 
        description of any other exemptions to such law; and
            (2) a description of how the applicant will use the grant 
        to carry out or improve its handgun purchaser licensing 
        program.
    (d) Eligibility Requirements.--To be eligible for grants, an 
applicant must have in effect handgun purchaser licensing laws that 
include the following provisions:
            (1) An individual applying for a handgun license or permit 
        must be at least 21 years old and be a national or lawful 
        permanent resident of the United States.
            (2) Such an individual must apply for the handgun purchaser 
        license or permit at a law enforcement agency in the State in 
        which they reside.
            (3) Such an individual must reapply for the handgun 
        purchaser license or permit after a period no longer than five 
        years.
            (4) Such an individual must submit to a background 
        investigation, and a criminal history check, in connection with 
        their application, as established by the State.
            (5) Such an individual must submit fingerprints and 
        photographs in connection with the application for the license 
        or permit.
            (6) Such an individual must provide proof that the 
        individual is legally present and lawfully resides in the 
        United States, including a birth certificate, or valid 
        passport. A lawful permanent resident must provide his or her 
        alien registration number and 90-day proof of residency. A 
        naturalized citizen must provide proof of citizenship.
            (7) Any individual who is prohibited from possessing a 
        firearm under section 922(g) of title 18, United States Code, 
        may not receive a license or permit.
    (e) Use of Funds.--A grantee under this Act shall use such grant to 
improve handgun purchaser licensing programs of that grantee.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this Act.
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