[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 174 (Tuesday, November 25, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S15969-S15970]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        BLOCKING THE ENFORCEMENT OF OUR NATION'S GUN SAFETY LAWS

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, the House-passed version of the Commerce, 
Justice and State Departments Appropriations Bill included provisions 
that, if adopted, would severely hamper efforts of the Bureau of 
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) to enforce our 
nation's gun safety laws.

[[Page S15970]]

  Under current law, dealers are required to notify the BATFE of the 
sale of two or more handguns to the same person within five business 
days. The House-passed provisions would prohibit the public release of 
information related to multiple handgun sales. The House language would 
also prohibit the release of information related to tracing requests on 
guns used in crimes. Eliminating the public availability of this data 
would make it more difficult to monitor the activities of reckless gun 
dealers.
  In addition, the House-passed language would prohibit the BATFE from 
issuing a rule requiring Federal Firearm Licensees to take a physical 
inventory of their firearms. 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. 
The House language would have required the immediate destruction of 
records of approved firearms purchases and transfers generated by the 
National Instant Criminal Background Check System. The retention of 
these records has assisted law enforcement officials trying to prevent 
guns from getting into the hands of criminals and identifying gun 
trafficking patterns.
  The House-passed provisions were never the subject of hearings and 
are not supported by any major law enforcement organizations. They 
could shield reckless and negligent gun dealers from public scrutiny 
and weaken the BATFE's oversight and enforcement authority. They should 
not be adopted by the Senate.

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