Congressional Action on Illegal Guns

from our friends at Mayors Against Illegal Guns:

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations bill, which included two significant provisions that will impact the prevalence of illegal guns. The bill included $12 million dollars for the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) Improvement Amendments Act grant program, which will strengthen the gun background check system. A report by Mayors Against Illegal Guns released last November ( http://maig.us/KpKOnW) found massive gaps in the system because many states fail to submit records about prohibited purchasers to the database.  The report also demonstrated that federal funding to states substantially improves record reporting by state agencies. The bill was also amended to include a policy rider that will prohibit the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) from monitoring bulk sales of assault rifles in states along the Mexican border – a new program that has already proven effective at combating drug trade violence on both sides of the border.