Congresswoman Beatty Backs Bipartisan Effort to Prevent Gun Violence
Last week, U.S. Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (OH-03) joined a bipartisan coalition to pass the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019,H.R. 8, and the Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2019, H.R. 1112. Coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the landmark Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act, these bills represent the first meaningful action taken by Congress to address gun violence in a generation.
"Nearly 95 percent of all Americans support universal background checks but, under Republican Leadership, Congress refused to act," Beatty said. "Now, after decades of stalling and obstruction, the new Democratic majority has finally taken action." Beatty continued, "We cannot continue to turn a blind eye and ear to what is happening in our own backyard. We owe it to all the victims and families affected by gun violence."
If enacted, H.R. 8 would require a mandatory background check on all firearm sales, with limited, reasonable exceptions, and close the "gun show loophole." H.R. 1112 would close the "Charleston Loophole" that allows individuals to obtain a firearm three days after a background check is initiated—no matter if it is completed or not. In 2015, a perpetrator used this legal technicality to acquire a gun he later used to kill nine members of the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina.
In addition to supporting these bills, Beatty authored the Safer America For Everyone Right (SAFER) Now Act, H.R. 282. Her comprehensive, gun violence prevention bill would ban assault weapons, close loopholes, encourage gun buybacks, and make firearm trafficking a federal crime, among other provisions. For more information on the SAFER Now Act, please read this press release.