[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 7]
[Senate]
[Pages 10228-10229]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           BACKGROUND CHECKS

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, the Brady law requires prospective gun 
purchasers to undergo a criminal background check before they are able 
to obtain a firearm from a federally licensed firearm dealer. It was 
created to prevent felons, fugitives, domestic abusers, and other 
prohibited persons from gaining access to guns. However, there are 
significant holes in this legislation that permit exploitation by those 
who wish to avoid criminal background checks and still obtain guns.
  In 1993, President Clinton signed the Brady bill into law. This law 
required a waiting period for handgun sales until records were 
available to instantly check criminal background of prospective gun 
purchasers. Once the National Instant Check System, NICS, became 
operational in 1998, the Justice Department maintained background check 
records on approved purchases for 6 months in order to ensure that 
felons and other prohibited buyers were not mistakenly approved. In 
2001, the Justice Department shortened this record retention period to 
90 days, the actual amount of time it takes to ensure proper audits of 
NICS.
  Under the Bush administration, however, Attorney General John 
Ashcroft sought to require the records of approved purchasers to be 
destroyed within 24 hours. In July 2002, the Government Accountability 
Office, GAO, issued a report on the potential effects of next-day 
destruction of NICS background check records. It concluded that 
destroying these records within 24 hours would prevent the Government 
from auditing the NICS system to ensure its accuracy and ``would have 
public safety implications.'' The GAO

[[Page 10229]]

warned that a corrupt dealer could provide the FBI with a different 
name than that of the actual buyer to obtain approval for the name of 
the false purchaser and then proceed with the sale to the actual 
prohibited buyer. Such a scheme would be nearly impossible to detect 
with background check records destroyed before the ATF could audit the 
dealer. Citing his concern about the privacy of gun owners, Attorney 
General Ashcroft ignored the GAO report and the 24-hour record-
destruction provision went into effect.
  Another loophole in the law is that it applies only to sales by 
licensed gun dealers, not to private transfers between unlicensed 
persons. Approximately 40 percent of gun sales are between private 
persons, such as at gun shows. Only six States require background 
checks on all firearm sales. According to the ATF, almost one-third of 
trafficked guns are acquired at gun shows and flea markets. These 
gatherings present the perfect opportunity for unlicensed sellers to 
offer countless guns for sale with no questions asked. People who would 
not pass a background check in a licensed gun store are able to 
purchase as many guns as they wish at gun shows.
  Between the enactment in 1993 and 2005, the Brady Act has prevented 
approximately 1.4 million convicted felons and other prohibited persons 
from buying guns from licensed retail dealers. Without NICS records, 
law enforcement officers do not have the opportunity to retrieve a 
mistakenly sold gun in order to protect against its use in a crime. I 
urge my colleagues to pass commonsense gun regulations which would put 
an end to these gaping holes in our gun laws.

                          ____________________