[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 33, Number 24 (Monday, June 16, 1997)]
[Pages 856-857]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
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, 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

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      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