    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book I)]
    [June 11, 1997]
    [Pages 720-721]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Memorandum on Enforcing the Youth Handgun Safety Act
    June 11, 1997

    Memorandum for the Secretary of the Treasury

    Subject: Enforcing the Youth Handgun Safety Act

        A major problem in our Nation today is the terrifying ease with
    which our young people gain illegal or unattended access to guns.
    Firearms are now responsible for 12 percent of fatalities among all
    American children and teenagers. Criminal use of firearms by young
    people is a national tragedy. Between 1984 and 1994, the number of
    juvenile offenders committing homicides by firearms nearly quadrupled.
    Moreover,

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    firearms are the fourth leading cause of accidental deaths among
    children ages 5 to 14 and are now the primary method by which young
    people commit suicide. A recent study supported by the Department of
    Justice found that slightly more than half of all privately owned
    firearms were stored unlocked and approximately one-third of all
    handguns were stored both loaded and unlocked. We must do all we can to
    prevent both illegal and unintended access to guns by juveniles.
        To address this issue, my Administration has consistently called for
    toughening our laws to help reduce youth gun violence. Specifically, we
    have fought for and gained passage of: (1) the Brady Law, to allow local
    law enforcement to conduct background checks before handguns are sold;
    (2) the Assault Weapons ban, to keep deadly assault weapons off the
    streets; (3) the Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994, to establish a policy of
    ``zero tolerance'' for guns in our schools; and (4) the Youth Handgun
    Safety Act, Subtitle B of the 1994 Crime Bill, to prohibit, in most
    circumstances, the transfer to or possession of a handgun by a juvenile.
        More recently, we proposed comprehensive juvenile crime legislation
    that, among other things, would continue to crack down on youth gun
    violence by increasing penalties for transferring a firearm to a
    juvenile, prohibiting violent juveniles from owning firearms as adults,
    and requiring Federal firearms licensees (FFLs) to provide a child
    safety lock with every gun sold. I hope the Congress will enact these
    important measures as soon as possible.
        Until the Congress acts, however, there is more we can do to keep
    handguns out of the hands of our Nation's youth. Existing law already
    bans the transfer of handguns to minors and juvenile possession of
    handguns, except in specified circumstances, and grants the Department
    of the Treasury authority to prescribe rules and regulations to
    implement this provision. I direct you to take the authorized steps
    necessary to enforce the provisions of the Youth Handgun Safety Act--and
    specifically, consistent with your statutory authority, to promptly
    publish in the Federal Register proposed regulations requiring that
    signs be posted on the premises of FFLs and that written notification be
    issued with each handgun sold to non-licensees warning that:
          (1) Federal law prohibits, except in certain limited
            circumstances, anyone under the age of 18 from knowingly
            possessing a handgun, or any adult from transferring a handgun
            to such a minor;
          (2) violation of the prohibition of transferring a handgun to a
            minor is, under certain circumstances, punishable by up to 10
            years in prison;
          (3) handguns are a leading contributor to juvenile violence and
            fatalities; and
          (4) safely storing and locking handguns away from children can
            help ensure compliance with Federal law.
        I also direct you to provide me with a written status report within
    60 days on how you will carry out this directive.
        Your implementation of this directive will help inform gun
    purchasers about their responsibility under Federal law to keep handguns
    from our children. It will also ensure that gun purchasers are warned
    about the frequency with which handguns kill or injure our kids.

                                                          William J. Clinton