Rep. Johnson applauds President Obama for taking action to curb gun violence

Calls on Congress to finish the job by passing legislation to confront America’s gun violence epidemic

WASHINGTON, D.C.– Today, Rep. Hank Johnson (GA-04) applauded President Obama’s announcement that the Administration will take executive action to help reduce and prevent gun violence in America.

“I commend President Obama for taking action to address the scourge of gun violence in our nation. The executive actions announced today will save lives and make our country safer – without infringing on any law-abiding individual’s right to own firearms,” said Rep. Johnson. “The President’s actions will strengthen life-saving background checks, protect communities with bolstered enforcement, improve mental health services and fuel research to make guns safer.”

“Now, Congress must come together to build on the President’s important steps to curb gun violence,” Rep. Johnson continued. “The most effective measures to address the epidemic of gun violence can only be achieved with Congressional action. To start, Congress should pass the bipartisan King-Thompson legislation to strengthen background checks and close dangerous loopholes, so that criminals, domestic abusers and the dangerously mentally ill don’t have easy access to guns. The President has done his part – and now, Congress needs to finish the job.”

The executive actions announced by the President today will make significant progress in the ongoing struggle to curb gun violence:

• Toughening background checks nationwide: The President’s executive actions provide new guidance on existing federal laws, clarifying that any individual in the business of selling firearms must obtain a license through the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and therefore conduct background checks on prospective gun purchasers. These actions also include new measures and resources to make the background check system more efficient and effective.

• Protecting communities with bolstered enforcement: The executive actions take new steps to promote smart and effective enforcement of our gun laws – including a proposed increase in funding for more ATF agents, greater resources for tracking illegal online firearms trafficking and strengthened domestic violence outreach efforts.

• Improving mental health services: The President is proposing increased investment to expand access to mental health care. Further, the executive actions remove barriers that prevent the reporting of relevant mental health information to the background check system.

• Driving new research into gun safety: The executive actions direct the Departments of Defense, Justice and Homeland Security to conduct or sponsor research into new technology to make firearms safer.

The President’s executive actions come after the Republican Congress has repeatedly refused to allow votes on commonsense, bipartisan gun violence prevention legislation – including acting on seven separate occasions to block a vote on a Republican Congressman’s legislation to close the outrageous terror gun loophole that allows suspected terrorists to buy deadly weapons across America.

In March 2015, a bipartisan coalition of U.S. House members introduced H.R. 1217, the King-Thompson bill to strengthen background checks nationwide. Rep. Johnson is an original cosponsor. The legislation expands the existing background check system to cover all commercial firearm sales, including those at gun shows, over the Internet or in classified ads while providing reasonable exceptions for family and friend transfers. Under the legislation, the current background check system would be expanded to require comprehensive, enforceable and life-saving background checks on all commercial gun sales.

Studies show that every day where background checks are used, the system stops more than 170 felons, some 50 domestic abusers, and nearly 20 fugitives from buying a gun. However, no system is in place to prevent these same prohibited purchasers from buying identical guns at a gun show, over the internet, or through a newspaper ad with no questions asked – because background checks are not required for these kinds of sales. The King-Thompson bill closes these outrageous, dangerous loopholes.

“As Members of Congress, our most sacred duty is to protect and defend the American people,” said Rep. Johnson. “With 30,000 gun deaths in America each year, Congress must honor the victims of gun violence, and their families, with urgent action to confront this devastating epidemic.”

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