Gun-registration bill not moving

August 27, 2000

Although a U.S. Senate bill that would require all handgun owners to
register their firearms has received a great deal of publicity —
especially online — in recent weeks, no action has been taken on it
since

WorldNetDaily first reported on the measure in March.

Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., chief sponsor of SB 2099.

The brainchild of Rhode Island Democrat Sen. Jack Reed,

SB 2099 originally had no cosponsors. However, since being introduced into the Senate and referred to the Finance Committee, noted gun-control advocate and New York Democrat Sen. Charles Schumer, along with Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., have also signed on to it.

If passed, the measure would amend a 1986 IRS code to require the registration of handguns and other firearms. Specifically, the measure would require an amendment to Chapter 53 of the Internal Revenue Code (Machine Guns, Destructive Devices, and Certain Other Firearms) to “require the registration of handguns in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.”

The bill is titled the “Handgun Safety and Registration Act of 2000.”

To aid in publicizing it in the hopes of getting it passed out of committee, Reed has set up an online petition for voters to use to help him push for the bill.

Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., cosponsor of SB 2099.

In fact, ostensibly because he had received overwhelming support for firearms registration,

Reed has established a website specifically to
help stump for gun registration.

“Although polls have shown that Americans overwhelmingly support handgun registration, I need your support to help move my Handgun Safety and Registration Act through Congress,” Reed said via his personal

Senate website, where he also asks visitors to sign his online petition supporting gun registration.

Reed said the measure is needed to “reduce illegal gun trafficking by providing for more efficient tracing of handguns used in crimes and tougher penalties for those who sell guns to illegal purchasers.”

“For far too long in America, too many gun crimes have gone unsolved because law enforcement doesn’t have the tools to tie criminals to the handguns they use in crimes,” the petition said. “Requiring handguns to be registered would help law enforcement officers do their jobs more effectively.”

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., a cosponsor of SB 2099 and noted gun-control advocate.

According to Reed’s measure, current handgun owners would also be required to register their guns. Also, the bill would make it a felony to transfer ownership of a handgun “without prior law enforcement approval.”

The bill adds handguns to the list of weapons registered by the Secretary of the Treasury, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, under the National Firearms Act, which currently covers machine guns, short-barrel shotguns, short-barrel rifles, silencers, bombs, grenades, and other specialized weapons, said information about the bill on Reed’s website.

Handguns would have to be registered with the ATF within a year of passage, but if the gun is transferred or sold to another owner before the one-year time limit, then it must be registered before the transfer can take place.

The bill requires the ATF to share handgun registration data with local, state and federal law-enforcement officials to enhance tracing capabilities, and adds a $5 tax for all handgun registrations or transfers instead of the $200 tax on all National Firearms Act weapons.

Also, a $50 tax would be assessed for every handgun made.

The Senate Finance Committee’s Taxation and IRS Oversight Subcommittee has responsibility for the measure. The bill has not yet been voted out.

According to the

Senate Calendar, only one IRS-related bill is currently scheduled for debate. That bill, S. 1792, deals with expiring provisions and “nonrefundable personal credits against regular tax liability.”

Senate considers gun registration