The National Rifle Association has issued its position on several gun bills currently pending before Congress. Below is an explanation of these bills and the NRA's position on each. TGDA members are reminded that Congress is currently recessed for summer break, so this would be a good time to contact your U. S Representative and Senators about these bills.

PRO SECOND AMENDMENT LEGISLATION

H.R. 193 by Rep. Joel Hefley (Colorado)

Amends the “Brady Act” to ensure that background check information on law-abiding citizens is immediately destroyed after a firearm sale is approved, thereby making certain that the National Instant Check System (NICS) cannot be used as a national gun owner registration system.

H.R. 325 by Rep. David Vitter (Louisiana)

Provides a federal tax credit of up to $1,500 for citizens who purchase gunlocks, gun safes, and other products for the safe storage of firearms.

H.R. 648 by Rep. Joe Wilson (S. Carolina)

Reaffirms the right of law-abiding Americans to obtain firearms and use them in defense of self, family and home, as well as to prevent the commission of a violent crime.

H.R. 765 by Rep. John Mica (Florida)

Allows cargo aircraft pilots to carry firearms in the cockpit as a last line of defense against terrorists.  Similar to S. 516.

H.R. 915 by Rep. Cliff Stearns (Florida)

Allows state Right-to-Carry permit holders to use those permits in other states that allow Right-to-Carry.  Currently, 35 states uphold this right of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms on their person to prevent violent crime, and those states on average have a 24% lower violent crime rate than the other 15 states.  In addition, this legislation would allow law enforcement officers, both active and retired, to carry concealed firearms in all states, even those that do not uphold the Right-to-Carry.

H.R. 990 by Rep. John Hostettler (Indiana)

Allows state Right-to-Carry reciprocity similar to H.R. 915, but does not contain the provision for Right-to-Carry by law enforcement officers.

H.R. 1036 by Rep. Cliff Stearns (Florida)

This legislation would outlaw current and future lawsuits filed by anti-gun local officials and trial lawyers who wrongly seek to blame the American firearms industry for the heinous acts of violent criminals, gang members and drug dealers.  This legislation has already passed the U.S. House and awaits Senate floor action.

H.R. 1049 by Rep. Joe Wilson (S. Carolina)

Allows cargo aircraft pilots to carry firearms in the cockpit as a last line of defense against terrorists.  Similar to S. 516 and H.R. 765.

ANTI-SECOND AMENDMENT LEGISLATION

H.R. 24 by Rep. Xavier Becerra (California)

Imposes national gun registration through ballistic “fingerprinting” of all firearms offered for sale in the United States (see S. 22 and S. 469).

H.R. 76 by Representative Sheila Jackson Lee (Texas)

Raises the minimum age for ownership of handguns and “assault weapons” from 18 to 21, thereby restricting the Second Amendment rights of millions of Americans including many who currently serve our country in the Armed Services.  In addition, the bill requires a gun purchaser to pay for a trigger lock with every firearm he buys, and could hold the gun owner criminally liable if a violent crime is committed with his gun, even if the gun is stolen.

H.R. 124 by Rep. Rush Holt (New Jersey)

Requires federal licensing and registration of every handgun purchased or previously owned by law-abiding citizens, and requires states to assume the full burden of carrying out and paying for this licensing and registration system.  Gun owners who fail to comply with these federal licensing and registration requirements would be subject to a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 15 years.

H.R. 143 by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (New York)

Expands the Clinton Gun Ban of 1994 to outlaw a wide range of auto-loading rifles that were not subject to the 1994 law.

H.R. 221 by Rep. Robert Wexler (Florida)

Limits the number of handguns law-abiding citizens are allowed to purchase - a system that can only be enforced through centralized federal gun registration.  Under this proposal, a gun owner could be convicted of a felony and spend years in prison simply for loaning a couple of handguns to a friend or family member for an afternoon of target shooting.

H.R. 260 by Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (Michigan)

Shuts down the thousands of gun shows held across America by imposing regulations and restrictions with which no gun show promoter or organizer could possibly comply.

H.R. 776 by Rep. Robert Andrews (New Jersey)

Imposes federal gun registration through ballistic “fingerprinting” of all firearms offered for sale in the United States (see S.22, 469, and H.R. 24).

H. R. 821 by Rep. James Langevin

(Rhode Island)

Outlaws many of the most popular pistols on the market today by requiring expensive design changes that will not significantly improve the safety or reliability of these firearms.

H. R. 899 by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (New York)

Would require law-abiding citizens to apply for a state license and pass a government examination before purchasing a handgun or purchasing ammunition for the handguns already owned.  In addition, like H.R. 221, this proposal could turn a gun owner into a federal felon simply for loaning handguns to a friend or family member for purposes of hunting or target shooting.

H. R. 1147 by Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald (California)

Requires handgun purchasers to pay for a trigger lock on every new firearm purchased.  In addition, provides tax money from handgun purchases for “gun safety” programs that could be used by future administrations for propaganda against the Second Amendment right of law-abiding citizens to Keep and Bear Arms.

H. R. 1171 by Rep. Robert Andrews (New Jersey)

Would provide tax-funded grants to law enforcement agencies to use iris scanning technology to conduct background checks on individuals who wish to purchase a firearm, thereby setting the stage for a wide range of dangerous government assaults on the privacy of citizens who choose to exercise their Second Amendment Right the Keep and Bear Arms.

PRO SECOND AMENDMENT LEGISLATION

S. 396 by Sen. Max Baucus (Montana)

Helps provide for the future financial strength of the American firearms industry by exempting small manufacturers from the firearms excise tax.

S. 518 by Sen. Jim Bunning (Kentucky)

Creates a critical last line of defense against a terrorist effort to commandeer a cargo aircraft by allowing pilots of cargo aircraft to carry firearms in the cockpit under the same rules that currently apply to pilots of passenger aircraft.

S. 659 by Senator Larry Craig (Idaho)

Outlaws the extortionist lawsuits that have been filed by anti-gun local officials and greedy trial lawyers against American firearms makers, distributors and retailers - halting this back-door scheme to ban guns by bankrupting the American firearm industry.

ANTI-SECOND AMENDMENT LEGISLATION

S. 22 by Sen. Thomas Daschle (South Dakota)

Creates a national gun registration system by requiring ballistic “fingerprinting” of all firearms offered for sale in the United States.  While this measure would be unlikely to prevent even one violent crime, it would cost taxpayers millions of dollars and drain precious law enforcement resources.

S. 217 by Sen. Barbara Boxer (California)

Gives the federal government the power to slap even harsher penalties on federally licensed firearms dealers who make errors in record keeping, including honest mistakes.

S. 364 by Sen. Jon Corzine (New Jersey)

Slaps a gag order on the Second Amendment by banning federal officials from advocating in favor of your Right to Keep and Bear Arms.  It bans the use of any government resources to defend your Second Amendment rights in our nation’s courts.

S. 429 by Sen. Dianne Feinstein (California)

Bans rifles capable of firing a .50 caliber center-fire cartridge, by classifying these rifles as “sniper weapons.”  The bill would open the door to outlawing any hunting and target rifles under this “sniper weapons” classification.

S. 469 by Sen. Herbert Kohl (Wisconsin)

Creates a national gun registration system by requiring ballistic “fingerprinting” of all firearms offered for sale in the United States (see S. 22).