Support H.R. 5005, The "Firearms Corrections And Improvements Act"

On March 16, Representative Lamar Smith (R-Tex.) introduced H.R. 5005, the “Firearms Corrections and Improvements Act,” which would make a variety of technical changes to federal firearm laws.  The bill would roll back unnecessary restrictions, correct errors, and codify longstanding congressional policies in the arena of firearms laws. 

Among its provisions, H.R. 5005 would:  permanently ban taxes or “user fees” on background checks by the federal instant check system--fees that Congress has prohibited in annual appropriations riders since 1998; permanently ban creation of a centralized electronic index of dealers’ records--a threat to gun owners’ privacy that Congress has barred through appropriations riders for a decade; codify limits on disclosure of trace records--which Congress has already limited through a series of appropriations riders over the past few years, out of concern for gun owners’ privacy and the confidentiality of law enforcement records; and repeal of obsolete language from the Brady Act’s “interim” waiting period provisions, that expired in 1998.

On March 28, the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism and Homeland Security will hold a Legislative Hearing on H.R. 5005, and the third Oversight Hearing of The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE).

Gun-ban proponent, and Violence Policy Center (VPC) staffer, Kristen Rand, and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (R), will testify at the hearings.  Bloomberg, in his continuing quest to inflict New York City-style gun laws on the rest of the nation, will be testifying against H.R. 5005.  Rand, whose organization has long called for a total ban on handgun ownership by law-abiding Americans, will testify, no doubt, in support of BATFE.

Those interested in watching the hearing online may do so at http://judiciary.house.gov/schedule.aspx.  The hearing is scheduled to begin at approximately 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 28. 

Please be sure to contact your U.S. Representative at (202) 225-3121, and urge him or her to cosponsor and support H.R. 5005, the “Firearms Corrections and Improvements Act!”