A group of US senators from both sides has reached a tentative agreement on new legislation that combines modest new gun restrictions with significant new investment in mental health and school security. It is the first tightening of US gun laws since the 1990s.
Under the new deal, background checks for gun buyers under the age of 21 will for the first time include a mandatory search of criminal files. A stricter background check for all buyers won’t make the deal. The agreement does open the door to so-called ‘red flag laws’, which allow authorities and citizens to go to court to request a temporary ban on weapons for people who pose a danger to themselves or others.
After several deadly shootings in Uvalde (Texas) and Buffalo (New York), the Democrats called for far-reaching measures. They want, among other things, a ban on the sale of (semi-)automatic assault weapons. However, there will be no such ban under the current Senate deal due to Republican opposition. Also, the minimum age for purchasing assault weapons will not be raised from 18 to 21, as President Joe Biden, among others, advocates. There is already a minimum age of 21 for pistols.
The deal frees up billions of federal dollars for “school security,” including increased spending on armed security guards, a move Republicans regularly insist on, and a more security-oriented architecture and infrastructure of schools and college campuses. More is also being invested in mental health care, for example in the form of a national network of ‘community-oriented health clinics’ to be set up.
Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Friday that he would pass any bill that passes the Senate that would increase gun restrictions. “If it saves lives and there is support for it from both sides, we welcome it, even if it doesn’t contain all the measures we want.”
President Biden is expected to sign a gun bill passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Commenting on the senators’ proposal, he said: “Obviously this doesn’t contain everything I think is necessary, but it reflects important steps in the right direction and would represent the most important gun safety legislation passed by Congress.” has adopted in recent decades.”
Extension of gun rights
The last substantial gun control laws were passed in the mid-1990s. In 1993, the so-called “Brady Act” created a national background check system. In 1994, a ban on assault weapons, including some semi-automatic rifles and pistols, followed. However, that last law expired in 2004 and was no longer amended.
In recent decades, Washington has mainly expanded gun rights for individual citizens. For example, in 2005 Congress made the firearms industry immune from product liability lawsuits. Relatives of victims circumvented this rule after the deadly shooting at an elementary school in Sandy Hook by suing arms manufacturer Remington over the way the company advertises. Remington eventually paid a substantial amount to the next of kin.
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