The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“MAKING IT EASIER FOR BAD APPLE GUN DEALERS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the Senate section on pages S10134-S10135 on July 29, 2003.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
MAKING IT EASIER FOR BAD APPLE GUN DEALERS
Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, last week I spoke about a report, released by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, that identified a list of 10 ``bad apple'' gun dealers. According to data released by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearm and Explosives, the dealers cited in the Brady Campaign report were the source of thousands of guns traced to criminal activity. Earlier this week, despite the startling information contained in the Brady report, the House of Representatives included an amendment in the Commerce, Justice, and State Departments appropriations bill which would not only make reports like the Brady Campaign's much more difficult to produce but also might cripple the ability of the ATF to enforce the nation's gun safety laws against firearms dealers who supply guns to criminals.
The House amendment would prohibit the public release of information related to the importation and production of firearms. This means that the only reliable national information available as to how many guns are produced in a given year, as well as type, caliber, and manufacturer, would no longer be available to the public. Further, the amendment would prohibit the public release of information related to multiple handgun sales. Under current law, dealers are required to notify the ATF of the sale of two or more handguns to the same person within 5 business days. Eliminating the availability of this data would make it even more difficult to monitor the activities of reckless gun dealers. In addition, the amendment would prohibit the release of information related to crime-gun tracing requests.
The amendment would also prohibit the ATF from issuing a rule requiring Federal Firearm Licensees to submit to a physical inventory. A physical inventory recently revealed that a Tacoma, WA, gun dealer could not account for the sniper rifle used by the Washington, D.C. area sniper and more than 200 other guns in its inventory. The amendment would also require the immediate destruction of records of approved firearms purchases and transfers generated by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. The retention of these record has assisted law enforcement officials in trying to prevent guns from getting into the hands of criminals, as well as identifying gun trafficking patterns.
I believe this provision could shield reckless and negligent gun dealers from public scrutiny and weaken the ATF's oversight and enforcement authority. It will hopefully be rejected here in the Senate.
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