Giffords Supports Bills to Better Protect Texas Communities from Gun Violence
Washington, DC — Giffords Senior Counsel Allison Anderman and members of the Texas Gun Owners for Safety chapter provided testimony today, detailing to the Texas House Homeland Security and Public Safety Committee why it is important to pass commonsense gun safety laws, including HB 118, a bill that would expand background checks for gun sales.
“Background checks are a key element in preventing tragic and unnecessary gun deaths in the United States because they prevent individuals who are ineligible to purchase firearms from obtaining them and keep guns from being diverted to the illegal market,” said Allison Anderman, Giffords Senior Counsel. “We know that background checks are a simple, popular, and effective step to keep communities safe, so it is crucial that this life saving legislation comes to pass. We applaud Rep. Ortega and other leaders who are working to advance gun safety in Texas.”
Currently, an estimated 22% of US gun owners acquired their most recent firearm without a background check, translating to millions of Americans acquiring millions of guns each year. Background checks are a key element in preventing tragic and unnecessary gun deaths in the United States. Since February 28, 1994, when the federal background check requirement became effective, and 2015, over three million people have been denied a firearm transfer or permit through the FBI’s background check system.
“As a gun owner, I know that background checks save lives,” said Becca DeFelice, Giffords Gun Owners for Safety Member. “In the past year, I have purchased 3 firearms, a handgun, a rifle, and a shotgun. Each time, I underwent a background check. As a law-abiding Texan, I have never objected to this basic safety measure. Background checks do not violate our Second Amendment rights, they serve to keep our families and communities safer.”
“Over years my reaction has changed from shock and dismay over school shootings, now to anger—anger over our political leadership’s lack of will to take even the most obvious, common-sense measures to curb gun violence,” said Howard Vestal, Giffords Gun Owners for Safety Member. “An easy and popular step would be to require background checks for all gun sales. Closing this background check loophole could save many lives.”
A letter supporting HB 118 and universal background checks, signed by 60 Texas gun owners, was also submitted to the Texas House Homeland Security & Public Safety Committee.
In 2019, a man fatally shot seven people and wounded 25 others in West Texas. The shooter previously failed a criminal background check when trying to purchase a gun, yet loopholes in our nation’s gun laws allowed him to bypass the background check system altogether and obtain the AR-style weapon used in his deadly attack from an unlicensed seller who wasn’t required to run a background check.
Around 80% of all firearms acquired for criminal purposes are obtained through transfers from unlicensed sellers. Background check laws help prevent guns from being diverted to the illegal gun market. In fact, states without universal background check laws export crime guns across state lines at a 30% higher rate than states that require background checks on all gun sales. Earlier this month, the United States House of Representatives passed H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, with bipartisan support. Neither H.R. 8 nor its Senate companion legislation, S. 529, the Background Checks Expansion Act, has yet been considered in the Senate.