[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 86 (Thursday, May 18, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3043-S3045]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. LEAHY (for himself, Ms. Collins, and Mr. Durbin):
  S. 1185. A bill to increase public safety by punishing and deterring 
firearms trafficking; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

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  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, for too long, criminals have exploited 
loopholes in our gun laws. Congress's failure to properly address this 
issue has had devastating consequences for families and communities 
across the country. We have allowed criminals to readily obtain 
firearms through straw purchasers, trafficking networks, and 
unregulated gun markets. It is past time for this body to take action.
  Today, I am reintroducing bipartisan legislation to close loopholes 
that allow criminals to obtain firearms through straw purchases and 
illegal trafficking. I am proud to be joined once again by Senators 
Collins and Durbin. The Stop Illegal Trafficking in Firearms Act would 
make it a Federal crime to act as a straw purchaser of firearms or to 
illegally traffic in firearms. It sets forth tough penalties for anyone 
who transfers a firearm with reasonable cause to believe that the gun 
will be used in a drug crime, crime of violence, or act of terrorism, 
or for anyone who smuggles firearms out of the United States. This 
legislation would help keep guns out of the hands of those who seek to 
do us harm.
  As the opioid crisis reached epidemic levels throughout the United 
States--and in Northeastern states like Vermont, New Hampshire, and 
Maine in particular--gun traffickers stood ready to profit. Dealers who 
cannot pass background checks take advantage of addicts by forcing them 
to make straw purchases. Passing this gun trafficking bill and closing 
these loopholes will be a key piece of our response to the opioid 
crisis in so many of our communities.
  This legislation will also be an important tool in preventing 
terrorist attacks on American soil. Terrorists have increasingly turned 
to guns to carry out domestic attacks, as they did in San Bernardino, 
Orlando, and Charleston. In the case of San Bernardino, the shooters 
relied on straw purchasing to acquire their deadly weapons. But because 
straw purchasing is not a Federal crime, prosecutors only charged the 
straw purchaser with making a false statement--a so called 
``paperwork'' offense. I have often heard from law enforcement that 
current law does not do enough to deter gun traffickers. This 
legislation answers that call.
  I also want to take note of National Police Week. This is a time when 
we pause to thank our Nation's law enforcement officers for their 
important work and many sacrifices. Earlier this week, thousands of 
officers gathered for a candlelight memorial. The names of 143 officers 
killed in the line of duty during 2016 were added to the walls of the 
National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial. It is not enough to merely 
pay tribute to these men and women. They deserve action. A year ago 
during Police Week, President Obama signed into law my legislation 
reauthorizing the life-saving Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant 
Program. That law will ensure that more than 200,000 officers receive 
protective vests over the next five years.
  The legislation that Senator Collins and I introduce today will also 
help keep our officers and our neighborhoods safe. We must not wait for 
another national tragedy to address this problem. Only Congress can 
close these loopholes. I recognize that one piece of legislation cannot 
prevent all gun violence, but this bill would provide a critical tool 
to investigate and deter straw purchasers and gun traffickers. That is 
why it has strong support from groups representing law enforcement 
officers and prosecutors around the nation, including the Fraternal 
Order of Police, Major Cities Chiefs Association, Federal Law 
Enforcement Officers Association, National Tactical Officers 
Association, and National District Attorneys Association.
  Like so many Vermonters, I am proud to be a responsible gun owner; 
and I know that Senator Collins shares my commitment to protecting our 
Second Amendment rights. But we also share a desire to keep guns out of 
the hands of violent criminals, drug traffickers, and terrorists. There 
is broad agreement in Congress that our existing gun laws do too little 
to prevent gun violence in our communities. The legislation we 
introduce today is an important part of the solution, and I call on all 
Senators to support this bill and make our communities safer.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, each May we recognize National Police 
Week to honor the service and sacrifice of U.S. law enforcement 
officers and to pay tribute to those who have lost their lives in the 
line of duty. One meaningful way for us to honor our police officers 
and other law enforcement officials this week is to give them the tools 
they need to stop the illegal firearms traffickers who threaten their 
lives and the lives of those they protect.
  Today, I rise to join Senator Leahy in introducing the Stop Illegal 
Trafficking and Firearms Act. Our bill would strengthen Federal law by 
making it easier for prosecutors to go after gun traffickers, while 
fully protecting the rights of the vast majority of gun owners who are 
law-abiding citizens.
  Straw purchasing is intended to achieve only one result, and that is 
to put a gun in the hands of a criminal who cannot legally obtain one. 
Today, traffickers exploit weaknesses in our laws by targeting 
individuals who can lawfully purchase guns, which are then used to 
commit crimes once they are transferred to the criminal, who would be 
unable to pass the background check. Right now, a straw purchaser can 
only be prosecuted for lying on a Federal form, and that is treated as 
a paperwork violation. Our bill would create new criminal offenses for 
straw purchasing, which would help our law enforcement officials take 
down these criminal enterprises.
  The illegal guns that we are targeting in our bill are frequently 
sold, resold, and trafficked across State lines, resulting in the 
proliferation of the illegal firearms in our communities. This practice 
has fueled the violence across our southern border associated with the 
Mexican drug cartels, as well as gang violence in our cities and, 
tragically, the heroin crisis that is ravaging so many families and 
communities and undermining public health and safety in States like 
Maine.
  Police officers tell me they have seen a major influx of drug dealers 
coming from out of State, straight up I-95's iron pipeline and other 
interstate highways, with direct ties to gangs in major cities. They 
are ready to sell or trade prescription opioids and heroin for illegal 
guns.

  Heroin flooding into our communities is reaching crisis levels. In 
2016, there were 376 drug-induced overdose deaths in my State, the 
State of Maine. That is more than car crashes and suicides put 
together. It is 104 more deaths than the year before. So this crisis 
with opioids and heroin is getting worse, not better. The vast majority 
of these overdoses were caused by at least one opioid, whether 
pharmaceutical or illicit.
  Often, drug dealers and gang members follow a similar pattern: They 
target addicts who have no criminal records, and then they trade or 
sell them drugs in exchange for guns. These gang members with criminal 
records cross into Maine and link up with drug addicts to be their 
straw buyers. These addicts are people with clean records who may 
legally purchase firearms. The addict then exchanges the gun for heroin 
to support his or her drug dependency, and the cycle is repeated time 
and again.
  Last year I had a deeply disturbing briefing from Federal law 
enforcement officials about a case in Maine that fit this exact 
pattern. Gang members trafficked crack cocaine and heroin between New 
Haven, CT, and Bangor, ME. They committed acts of violence, including 
assaults, armed robberies, attempted murder, and murder. They traded 
narcotics for firearms and then distributed them to other gang members 
back in Connecticut. This is exactly the type of criminal activity our 
bill aims to prevent, and it complements existing laws that target 
criminals who are profiting from firearms and drug trafficking.
  Current Federal law makes preventing and prosecuting straw purchasing 
offenses very difficult for law enforcement officials, since a straw 
purchaser can be prosecuted only for lying on a Federal form, a 
relatively minor offense.
  The Stop Illegal Trafficking in Firearms Act would create new, 
specific criminal offenses for straw purchasing and trafficking in 
firearms. Instead of a slap on the wrist, these crimes would be 
punishable by up to 15 years in prison. For those straw purchasers who 
knew or have reasonable cause to believe that the firearm would be used 
to

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commit a crime of violence, that crime would be punishable by up to 25 
years in prison.
  Our bill would also strengthen existing laws that prohibit gun 
smuggling. Right now, it is illegal for someone to smuggle a firearm 
into the United States with the intent to engage in drug trafficking or 
violent crime. To combat the drug cartels operating on our southern 
border, however, we must also prohibit firearms and ammunition from 
being trafficked out of the United States for those illegal purposes. 
In so doing, our bill would provide an important tool to combat 
trafficking organizations that are exporting firearms and ammunition 
from the United States and into Mexico where they are used by the drug 
cartels that are in turn fueling the heroin crisis here at home.
  In a recent investigation along our southern border, ATF agents 
seized nearly 40,000 rounds of illegal ammunition from suspects who 
were attempting to smuggle both firearms and ammunition across the 
border and into Mexico. Similarly, a large percentage of the guns used 
in crimes in our largest cities were trafficked across State lines.
  I want to emphasize that our bill fully protects the Second Amendment 
rights of our law-abiding citizens. It protects legitimate private gun 
sales and is drafted to avoid sweeping in innocent transactions and 
placing unnecessary burdens on lawful private sales. It expressly 
exempts certain transactions that are permitted under current laws, 
such as gifts, raffles, and auctions. Furthermore, the bill expressly 
prohibits any authority provided by this act from being used to 
establish a Federal firearms registry--something I am strongly opposed 
to.
  I started my remarks by reminding us all that this is National Police 
Week. Let's honor our police officers and other law enforcement by 
giving them this much needed tool to crack down on illegal firearm 
traffickers who are exploiting our addicts in so many ways in order to 
obtain guns that they are not legally able to purchase. I urge my 
colleagues to support this much needed legislation.
  Thank you, Mr. President.

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