Home > 106th Congressional Bills > H.R. 5473 (ih) To assist workers who are displaced by trade or technology through no [Introduced in House] ...H.R. 5473 (ih) To assist workers who are displaced by trade or technology through no [Introduced in House] ...
106th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5472
To provide grants for the purchase of firearms to States and units of
local government that enforce certain rules designed to protect the
public from the misuse of handguns.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 12, 2000
Mrs. Tauscher (for herself, Mrs. McCarthy of New York, Mr. Blagojevich,
Mr. Blumenauer, Ms. Carson, Mr. Crowley, Ms. Jackson-Lee of Texas, Ms.
Lee, Mrs. Maloney of New York, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Millender-McDonald,
Mr. Moran of Virginia, Mr. Nadler, Mrs. Napolitano, Ms. Norton, Ms.
Pelosi, Ms. Schakowsky, Mrs. Jones of Ohio, Ms. Velazquez, Ms. Woolsey,
Mr. Lipinski, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Matsui, Mr. Hastings of Florida, Mr.
Engel, Ms. McCarthy of Missouri, Mr. Kennedy of Rhode Island, and Mr.
Weiner) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide grants for the purchase of firearms to States and units of
local government that enforce certain rules designed to protect the
public from the misuse of handguns.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Safer Guns for Safer Communities
Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
The purposes of this Act are to encourage firearms importers,
manufacturers, and dealers to import, make, market, and sell firearms
in a responsible manner so as to protect the public from the misuse of
handguns, and to provide for the responsible disposition of the
firearms obtained by law enforcement agencies which are no longer
needed by such agencies.
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) According to the Department of Health and Human
Services, 3,793 children and adolescents under 20 years of age
were killed with firearms in 1998.
(2) The National Institute of Justice reported in a
national survey that, in 1994, 44,000,000 people--approximately
35 percent of households--owned 192,000,000 firearms,
65,000,000 of which were handguns. 74 percent of those people
were reported to own more than 1 firearm. Nearly 50 percent of
those people keep 1 or more firearms in an unsecured place and
without trigger locks.
(3) In August 1999, the Department of Education reported
that, on an average day, more than 10 students are expelled for
bringing guns to school, and that nearly 4,000 students were
expelled in 1997-1998 for carrying a firearm onto school
grounds.
(4) According to an article published in the Journal of the
American Medical Association in 1999, gunshot injuries in the
United States in 1994 will result in $2,300,000,000 in lifetime
medical costs. Nearly half of these costs will be borne by
United States taxpayers.
(5) According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and
Firearms, over 4,300,000 new firearms were available in the
United States in 1998.
SEC. 4. GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Program Authorized.--The Attorney General, in consultation with
the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the Secretary of the
Treasury, may provide a total of not more than 50 grants to eligible
States and units of local government for a period not to exceed 3
years.
(b) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a grant award or funds
under this section, a State or unit of local government shall submit a
written application to the Attorney General that contains such
information as the Attorney General may reasonably require and
includes--
(1) a commitment by the applicant that the applicant (or,
if funds provided to the applicant under this section are to be
provided to a qualified association of law enforcement officers
for the purchase of a firearm, a commitment by the association
that the association) will not purchase a firearm from an
importer or manufacturer of firearms unless--
(A) the Secretary of the Treasury has certified
that, during the 1-year period preceding the date of
the certification, the importer or manufacturer has
been in compliance with section 5 of this Act, and,
during the 5-year period preceding the date of the
certification, importer or manufacturer has not been
convicted of a violation of chapter 44 of title 18,
United States Code, that could have been punished by a
term of imprisonment exceeding 1 year; and
(B) the firearm was most recently imported into the
United States by an importer who is so certified, or
was manufactured by a manufacturer who is so certified;
(2) a commitment by the applicant, and a certification by
the Secretary of the Treasury, that the applicant has in effect
rules and regulations requiring each law enforcement agency
under the jurisdiction of the applicant to comply with section
6;
(3) a commitment by the applicant that, during the year for
which the grant award is made under this section, the applicant
will expend, from non-Federal sources, for the purchase of
firearms to be acquired with the grant funds, an amount equal
to not less than 25 percent of the amount of the grant award;
and
(4) a commitment by the applicant that the applicant will,
in accordance with guidelines established by the Attorney
General, identify and collect data regarding the purchase and
disposal of firearms pursuant to this Act.
(c) Use of Funds.--An entity that receives grant funds under this
section shall use such grant funds only to purchase firearms from a
licensed importer or licensed manufacturer who is in compliance with
section 5.
(d) Withhold Payments.--
(1) In general.--If the Attorney General, in consultation
with the Secretary of the Treasury, finds that a recipient of
grant funds provided under this section has violated a
commitment made by the recipient pursuant to subsection (b),
the Attorney General shall withhold from the applicant for the
grant any payments that would otherwise be made to the
applicant under this section.
(2) Redistribution.--Any funds that are withheld under
paragraph (1) shall be redistributed to other grantees that are
eligible to receive funds under this section.
(e) Duties of the Attorney General.--The Attorney General of the
United States--
(1) shall to the extent practicable, provide an equitable
distribution of grants under this section among the regions of
the United States and among urban, suburban, and rural areas;
(2) shall provide for the evaluation of programs
implemented pursuant to this section, which may include outcome
measures such as crime and victimization indicators, gun-
related crime, quality of life measures, and community
perceptions;
(3) shall issue such guidelines and regulations as may be
necessary to carry out the responsibilities of the Attorney
General under this section; and
(4) may reserve for administrative expenses not more than 5
percent of the funds made available to carry out this section.
(f) Duties of the Secretary of the Treasury.--The Secretary of the
Treasury--
(1) shall evaluate applications submitted pursuant to this
section, and make certifications, as appropriate, under
subsection (b)(2);
(2) shall evaluate annually importers and manufacturers
from whom grantees under this section obtain firearms to
determine whether the importers and manufacturers are in
compliance with the conditions set forth in section 5, and
advise the Attorney General of the determinations;
(3) shall evaluate annually the rules and regulations of
the grantees under this section to determine whether the
grantees are in compliance with section 5, and advise the
Attorney General of the determinations;
(4) shall issue such guidelines and regulations, consistent
with the guidelines and regulations issued under subsection
(e)(4), as may be necessary to carry out the responsibilities
of the Secretary of the Treasury under this section; and
(5) may reserve for administrative expenses not more than 5
percent of the funds made available to carry out this section.
(g) Report.--Not later than 6 months after funds are paid to a
grantee under this section, the grantee shall submit to the Attorney
General a written report that describes how the funds have been used.
(h) Limitations on Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
carry out this section not more than $50,000,000 for each of
the fiscal years 2001 through 2003.
(2) Allocation.--An amount equal to 95 percent of the
amount appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1) for a fiscal year
shall be made available to the Attorney General of the United
States, and an amount equal to 5 percent of the appropriated
amount shall be made available to the Secretary of the
Treasury.
SEC. 5. CODE OF CONDUCT.
(a) Requirements.--
(1) Product standards.--
(A) Applicable to handguns.--
(i) Second ``hidden'' serial number.--The
licensee shall not import, manufacture, or
offer for sale a handgun unless the handgun
has, on the exterior, a visible serial number,
and has, on the interior frame or receiver, a
second serial number that is visible only with
the aid of an optical instrument.
(ii) External locking device.--During the
24-month period beginning with the date of the
enactment of this Act, the licensee shall not
offer for sale a handgun that is not supplied
with an external locking device that, when
locked, prevents the operation of the handgun.
(iii) Internal locking device.--After the
24-month period described in clause (ii), the
licensee shall not import, manufacture, or
offer for sale a handgun that does not
incorporate a locking system which prevents the
handgun from being operated without a key,
combination, or use of another mechanism unique
to the handgun.
(iv) Smart gun technology.--The licensee--
(I) shall expend an amount equal to
not less than 2 percent of the annual
firearms sales revenues of the licensee
on the development of a technology that
recognizes only authorized users and
permits a handgun to be used only by
authorized persons; and
(II) beginning 36 months after the
date of the enactment of this Act,
shall not import, design, manufacture,
or offer for sale a handgun (other than
a curio) that does not incorporate the
technology, except that this
requirement shall not apply to a
handgun model that is in production as
of such date of enactment.
(v) Child safety.--Beginning 12 months
after the date of the enactment of this Act,
the licensee shall not import, manufacture, or
offer for sale a handgun that can be readily
fired by a child who has not attained 6 years
of age.
(vi) Minimum barrel length.--The licensee
shall not import, manufacture, or offer for
sale a handgun unless the barrel of the handgun
is at least 3 inches in length or the average
group diameter test result for the handgun is
1.7 inches or less at 7 yards, 3.9 inches or
less at 14 yards, and 6.3 inches or less at 21
yards. For purposes of this clause, the average
group diameter test result for a handgun is the arithmetic mean of the
results of 3 separate trials, each performed on a different handgun of
the same make and model as the handgun, and in each of which, 5 rounds
are fired from the handgun at a target from the specified distance and
the greatest distance in inches between the center of the holes made in
the test target is the result of the trial.
(vii) Performance tests.--The licensee
shall not import, manufacture, or offer for
sale a handgun unless the handgun model has
passed the following tests:
(I) The handgun does not show any
hairline crack or other evidence of
material failure after a cartridge
loaded to generate excess pressure (as
set forth in accepted specifications
for cartridges of this type) has been
fired from each chamber of the handgun.
(II) The handgun does not
malfunction after the first 20 of 600
rounds are fired from the handgun, and
has 6 or fewer malfunctions and has no
crack or breakage of an operating part
of the handgun that increases the
danger of injury after 600 rounds are
fired from the handgun, in the manner
described in this subclause. For
purposes of this subclause, a
malfunction caused by a failure to
clean and lubricate, or by defective
ammunition, shall be disregarded. In
the firing of the handgun, the firing
shall cease after each 100 rounds are
fired and shall resume after any loose
screws are tightened, the handgun is
cleaned, or an empty magazine or
cylinder is refilled to capacity,
except that if the handgun loads other
than with a detachable magazine, the
firing shall cease for 10 minutes after
each 50 rounds are fired. The handgun
shall be fired using the ammunition
recommended in the handgun manual, or
if none is recommended, any standard
ammunition of the correct caliber in
new condition.
(viii) Drop test.--The licensee shall not
import, manufacture, or offer for sale a
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