[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 64 (Wednesday, May 5, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4804-S4805]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LAUTENBERG:
  S. 967. A bill to provide a uniform national standard to ensure that 
consealed firearms are available only to authorized persons for lawful 
purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.


                   concealed firearms prohibition act

  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation, 
the Concealed Firearms Prohibition Act, that would help make our 
communities safer.
  Across the country, citizens are looking for ways to stop gun 
violence. They see their families torn apart, their friends lost 
forever, and their communities shattered. And they wonder what has gone 
wrong in a nation where more than 30,000 people are killed by gunfire 
each year.
  One area of growing concern is concealed weapons. Recently, the NRA 
tried to push a measure that would have allowed more concealed weapons 
in Missouri. They spent about $4 million trying to pass their 
referendum. But the voters responded with a resounding ``no.'' They do 
not want more people secretly carrying weapons in their schoolyards, 
malls, stadiums and other public places.
  Regrettably, there are still too many politicians who will not listen 
to the people. They insist on marching in lockstep with the NRA. They 
actually want to escalate the arms race on our streets. They try to 
suggest that if more people are carrying guns, our neighborhoods will 
be safer. That position simply defies common sense. The answer to gun 
violence is not a new version of the Wild West, with everyone carrying 
a gun on his or her hip, taking the law into their own hands.
  Every day people get into arguments over everything from traffic 
accidents to domestic disputes. Maybe these arguments lead to yelling, 
or even fisticuffs. But if people are carrying guns, those conflicts 
are much more likely to end in a shooting, and death. And since some 
States allow individuals to carry concealed weapons with little or no 
training in the operation of firearms, there is a greater chance that 
incompetent or careless handgun users will accidentally injure or kill 
innocent bystanders.
  More concealed weapons on our streets will also make the jobs of law 
enforcement officers more dangerous and difficult. But you do not need 
to take my word for this, Mr. President. Just ask the men and women in 
law enforcement. In fact, the Police Executive Research Forum did just 
that. In their 1996 survey, they found that 92 percent of their 
membership opposed legislation allowing private citizens to carry 
concealed weapons.
  Mr. President, although the regulation of concealed weapons has been 
left to States, it is time for Congress to step in to protect the 
public. All Americans have a right to be free from the dangers posed by 
the carrying of concealed handguns, regardless of their State of 
residence. And Americans should be able to travel across State lines 
for business, to visit their families, or for any other purpose, 
without having to worry about concealed weapons.
  Besides the strong Federal interest in ensuring the safety of our 
citizens, there are other reasons why this area requires Congressional 
intervention. Beyond the lives lost and ruined, crimes committed with 
handguns impose a substantial burden on interstate commerce and lead to 
a reduction in productivity and profitability for businesses around the 
Nation. Moreover, to ensure its coverage under the Constitution's 
commerce clause, my bill applies only to handguns that have been 
transported in interstate or foreign commerce, or that have parts or 
components that have been transported in interstate or foreign 
commerce. This clearly distinguishes the legislation from the gun-free 
school zone statute that was struck down in the Supreme Court's Lopez 
case.
  Mr. President, the bottom line is that more guns equal more death. 
This legislation will help in our struggle to reduce the number of guns 
on our streets, and help prevent our society from becoming even more 
violent and dangerous.
  I hope my colleagues will support the bill, and I ask unanimous 
consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 967

       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 ``Concealed Firearms 
     Prohibition Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds that--
       (1) crimes committed with firearms threaten the peace and 
     domestic tranquility of the United States and reduce the 
     security and general welfare of the people of the United 
     States;
       (2) crimes committed with firearms impose a substantial 
     burden on interstate commerce

[[Page S4805]]

     and lead to a reduction in productivity and profitability for 
     businesses around the country whose workers, suppliers, and 
     customers are adversely affected by gun violence;
       (3) the public carrying of firearms increases the level of 
     gun violence by enabling the rapid escalation of otherwise 
     minor conflicts into deadly shootings;
       (4) the public carrying of firearms increases the 
     likelihood that incompetent or careless firearm users will 
     accidently injure or kill innocent bystanders;
       (5) the public carrying of firearms poses a danger to 
     citizens of the United States who travel across State lines 
     for business or other purposes; and
       (6) all Americans have a right to be protected from the 
     dangers posed by the carrying of concealed firearms, 
     regardless of their State of residence.

     SEC. 3. UNLAWFUL ACT.

       Section 922 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
     inserting after subsection (y) the following:
       ``(z) Firearms.--
       ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), it 
     shall be unlawful for a person to carry a firearm, any part 
     of which has been transported in interstate or foreign 
     commerce, on his or her person in public.
       ``(2) Exceptions.--Paragraph (1) does not apply to--
       ``(A) a person authorized to carry a firearm under State 
     law who is--
       ``(i) a law enforcement official;
       ``(ii) a retired law enforcement official;
       ``(iii) a duly authorized private security officer;
       ``(iv) a person whose employment involves the transport of 
     substantial amounts of cash or other valuable items; or
       ``(v) any other person that the Attorney General determines 
     should be allowed to carry a firearm because of compelling 
     circumstances, under regulations that the Attorney General 
     may promulgate;
       ``(B) a person authorized to carry a firearm under a State 
     law that permits a person to carry a firearm based on an 
     individualized determination, based on a review of credible 
     evidence, that the person should be allowed to carry a 
     firearm because of compelling circumstances (not including a 
     claim of concern about generalized or unspecified risks); or
       ``(C) a person authorized to carry a firearm on his or her 
     person under Federal law.
       ``(3) Effect on other laws.--
       ``(A) Federal laws.--Nothing in this subsection supersedes 
     or limits any other Federal law (including a regulation) that 
     prohibits or restricts the possession or transportation of a 
     firearm.
       ``(B) State and local laws.--Nothing in this subsection 
     supersedes or limits any law (including a regulation) of a 
     State or political subdivision of a State that--
       ``(i) grants a right to carry a concealed firearm that is 
     more restrictive than a right granted under this subsection;
       ``(ii) permits a private person or entity to prohibit or 
     restrict the possession of a concealed firearm on property 
     belonging to the person;
       ``(iii) prohibits or restricts the possession of a firearm 
     on any property, installation, building, facility, or park 
     belonging to a State or political subdivision of a State; or
       ``(iv) permits a person to--

       ``(I) transport a lawfully-owned and lawfully-secured 
     firearm in a vehicle for hunting or sporting purposes; or
       ``(II) use a lawfully-owned firearm for hunting or sporting 
     purposes.''.

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