[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 114 (Tuesday, July 29, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10134-S10135]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               MAKING IT EASIER FOR BAD APPLE GUN DEALERS

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, last week I spoke about a report, released 
by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, that identified a list 
of 10 ``bad apple'' gun dealers. According to data released by the 
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearm and Explosives, the dealers cited 
in the Brady Campaign report were the source of thousands of guns 
traced to criminal activity. Earlier this week, despite the startling 
information contained in the Brady report, the House of Representatives 
included an amendment in the Commerce, Justice, and State Departments 
appropriations bill which would not only make reports like the Brady 
Campaign's much more difficult to produce but also might cripple the 
ability of the ATF to enforce the nation's gun safety laws against 
firearms dealers who supply guns to criminals.
  The House amendment would prohibit the public release of information 
related to the importation and production of firearms. This means that 
the only reliable national information available as to how many guns 
are produced in a given year, as well as type, caliber, and 
manufacturer, would no longer be available to the public. Further, the 
amendment would prohibit the public release of information related to 
multiple handgun sales. Under current law, dealers are required to 
notify the ATF of the sale of two or more handguns to the same person 
within 5

[[Page S10135]]

business days. Eliminating the availability of this data would make it 
even more difficult to monitor the activities of reckless gun dealers. 
In addition, the amendment would prohibit the release of information 
related to crime-gun tracing requests.
  The amendment would also prohibit the ATF from issuing a rule 
requiring Federal Firearm Licensees to submit to a physical inventory. 
A physical inventory recently revealed that a Tacoma, WA, gun dealer 
could not account for the sniper rifle used by the Washington, D.C. 
area sniper and more than 200 other guns in its inventory. The 
amendment would also require the immediate destruction of records of 
approved firearms purchases and transfers generated by the National 
Instant Criminal Background Check System. The retention of these record 
has assisted law enforcement officials in trying to prevent guns from 
getting into the hands of criminals, as well as identifying gun 
trafficking patterns.
  I believe this provision could shield reckless and negligent gun 
dealers from public scrutiny and weaken the ATF's oversight and 
enforcement authority. It will hopefully be rejected here in the 
Senate.

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