[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 195 (Wednesday, December 19, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2663]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               H.R. 2640

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 19, 2007

  Mr. CONYERS. Madam Speaker, this bill makes important changes to the 
national instant check system, designed to help States identify and 
prevent convicted felons and other dangerous individuals from owning 
firearms.
  As it currently stands, millions of criminal records are not 
accessible by the instant check system, and millions of additional 
records fall through the cracks as a result of backlogs and other 
problems. The bill will help cure these problems by providing the 
resources and incentives needed to modernize the system and ensure that 
the records are up to date.
  Improving and enhancing the instant check system will help prevent 
future tragedies such as the Virginia Tech shootings earlier this year, 
where there is clear reason to know, after due process, that the 
individual in question should not own a gun.
  The House has passed this bill in each of the last two Congresses. 
Now the Senate has passed it, with changes dealing with the procedures 
for restoring gun ownership rights.
  While I continue to have reservations about the new process for 
restoring gun ownership rights to individuals previously diagnosed with 
mental illness, and will be monitoring its implementation very closely, 
passage of the underlying bill is extremely important.
  I want to again thank my good friends Carolyn McCarthy and John 
Dingell, as well as Rick Boucher from the Judiciary Committee, and 
Lamar Smith, our Ranking Member, for all their work on this important 
matter.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

                          ____________________