Giffords Applauds Introduction of the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2023

Washington DC — Today, former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, founder of the gun violence prevention organization Giffords, applauded the introduction of the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2023. Sponsored by Representative Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Mike Thompson (D-CA), the Bipartisan Background Checks Act would require a background check for all gun sales and transfers, with reasonable exceptions for self-defense, law enforcement, hunting/target shooting, and exchanges between family members. 

“Universal background checks will save lives and the majority of Americans support this important, foundational legislation. I applaud Representatives Brian Fitzpatrick and Mike Thompson for demonstrating the courage to act by introducing this vital bill. Last month, the CDC released new data showing that more Americans than ever are dying from gun violence: in 2021, nearly 50,000 lives were lost. We urge the House to do the right thing and take up the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2023.”

“Our communities will be safer with the expansion of background checks for firearm sales under this bill,” said Congressman Fitzpatrick. “Background checks are a simple preventive measure that are proven to help our law enforcement keep guns out of the hands of criminals. This bipartisan legislation will prevent felons, domestic abusers, and dangerously mentally ill citizens from obtaining a firearm, while protecting the constitutional rights of law-abiding Americans. I’m proud to support these common-sense reforms.”

“Last year, we passed the most significant gun violence prevention legislation in three decades in the wake of the tragedy in Uvalde, Texas. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act will help save lives and is a strong step in the right direction — but we know it’s just the first step,” said Congressman Thompson. “The Bipartisan Background Checks Act is commonsense gun violence prevention legislation that will do the most important thing gun violence prevention legislation can do: save lives. By keeping weapons out of the hands of dangerous individuals, we can help keep our communities safe and reduce the threat of gun violence. I am incredibly proud to work with Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick who has been a tremendous partner on this legislation, and I look forward to a continued partnership to secure passage of this bill and deliver reforms that the majority of Americans support.”

The Bipartisan Background Checks Act was first introduced on January 8, 2019, as H.R. 8 on the eighth anniversary of the Tucson shooting. Since then, Giffords experts have testified in Congress about the importance of universal background checks and Giffords has run ad campaigns in support of the legislation. The House of Representatives passed H.R. 8 with bipartisan support during both the 116th and 117th Congresses.

Americans—including Democrats, Republicans, and gun owners—overwhelmingly support requiring a background check on every sale of a gun. Ensuring that people prohibited from possessing or purchasing firearms cannot do so through an unregulated sale from an unlicensed or online seller or at a gun show would have a significant public safety impact. Many mass shootings–-including the recent shooting at a St. Louis high school—could have been stopped if a background check were required for all gun sales. 

Background checks are highly effective at preventing people who are not eligible to purchase or possess guns from getting them: over three million illegal gun sales have been stopped by background checks since 1994, and in 2021 alone, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) stopped 153,565 prohibited people attempting to buy guns from licensed dealers. In the 10 years since Giffords’s founding, 29 states have passed 71 significant background checks laws. 

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