One Step Closer: Giffords Applauds House Passage of Bipartisan Gun Violence Prevention Package

Washington, DC — Giffords, the gun violence prevention group led by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, applauded the House passage of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. This bill represents the first significant gun safety legislation to pass both chambers of Congress in nearly 30 years. Gun lobby leaders, National Riffle Association (NRA) and the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), have come out against the legislation. This historic moment happened the day after a conservative supermajority on the Supreme Court issued a decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen, an extreme ruling that imposes the gun lobby’s dangerous “guns everywhere” agenda. 

Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords:

“For the first time in nearly 30 years, gun violence prevention legislation is heading to the president’s desk for a signature. This is a truly historic day—but it was never a foregone conclusion. We are here because people from both sides of the aisle came together in support of gun safety and because of the movement we have built over the last ten years. As a congresswoman, I prided myself on reaching out to Republicans and Democrats on legislation. It sometimes feels like we are more divided than ever as a people, but today, the House of Representatives took up the mantle of gun safety in a bipartisan fashion. Thank you to the champions in the House who have fought so hard to bring us to this moment, and I look forward to seeing President Biden sign this bill into law.”

Peter Ambler, Executive Director, Giffords:

“The road to progress bookended by the horrific tragedies at Sandy Hook and Uvalde has been long and difficult. Far too many lives have been lost to gun violence in the intervening years. But now, at long last, we’re so close to enacting the first major piece of gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years. This legislation will fund lifesaving community violence intervention programs, help states better implement extreme risk protection order laws, protect Americans at risk of intimate partner violence, and address gun trafficking. Because of the courage of gun safety champions in the House who voted for this bill, countless lives will be saved. Giffords is thankful for our partners in the House for getting this legislation across the finish line.”

Earlier this month the House also passed the Protecting Our Kids Act, which included legislation to raise the age to 21 years old to purchase assault-style rifles and shotguns, address untraceable or ghost guns, prevent gun trafficking, and promote safe firearm storage. Additionally, on June 9, the House voted to create a federal extreme risk protection order (ERPO) process.

The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is a package of the following policies, many of which Giffords has long advocated for to save lives. A detailed policy memo can be found here. 

• Authorizes Federal Funding for the Implementation and Establishment of State Extreme Risk Protection Orders
  • This legislation provides $750 million in federal funding to support state implementation and establishment of state-level extreme risk protection order (ERPO) laws. This bill authorizes Bryne JAG funding for state crisis intervention orders, also known as ERPO laws or red flag laws, which are proven to be effective tools that help reduce gun suicides and mass shootings. ERPOs empower law enforcement agencies, and often families and household members, to petition courts for a civil (non-criminal) order to temporarily suspend a person’s access to firearms before they commit violence against others or themselves. 

• Addresses the Dating/Intimate Partner Loophole
  • This legislation addresses a key gap in federal law that leaves victims of abuse vulnerable to injury and death by an armed domestic abuser. While more than half of all intimate partner homicides are committed by dating partners, federal law currently only prohibits gun possession among individuals convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence if the abuser has been married to, lived with, or had a child with the victim. Closing this deadly loophole is vital to protecting survivors of domestic violence—states that prevent abusive dating partners from owning guns have 16% fewer intimate partner gun homicides.

• Funds Community Violence Intervention Programs
  • This legislation provides $250 million for community violence intervention (CVI) programs, which would be the largest investment in CVI in US history. This funding would support coordinated, evidence-informed, community-based intervention and prevention programs. These strategies work to reduce violence by delivering comprehensive services to individuals at the highest risk of engaging in or being victimized by interpersonal violence.

• Requires Enhanced Background Checks for People under 21 to Buy Long Guns
  • By requiring additional investigative steps to review juvenile records and consult with local law enforcement before a person under the age of 21 is able to purchase a long gun, this legislation provides law enforcement critical time to investigate a young person seeking to buy a long gun, including a semiautomatic assault-style rifles, to help reduce the risk of them using the gun for an act of violence. Young people disproportionately commit gun homicides: 18–20 year olds comprise just four percent of the US population, but account for 17% of known homicide offenders.

• Addresses Gun Trafficking
  • This legislation establishes federal statutes to clearly define and penalize firearms trafficking and straw purchasing. These statutes would create new avenues for the investigation and prosecution of these often-overlooked crimes. 

• Updates Language around Licensed Gun Sellers
  • Federal law provides that persons “engaged in the business” of dealing in firearms must be licensed and conduct background checks on purchasers. Unlicensed sellers are not required to conduct background checks. The proposal would make a minor change to the language that determines which gun sellers must obtain a license and conduct background checks. The loophole that allows unlicensed sellers to sell guns without conducting background checks would remain open. 

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