19–006

107TH CONGRESS REPORT " HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ! 2d Session 107–748

OUR LADY OF PEACE ACT

OCTOBER 15, 2002.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State 

of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. SENSENBRENNER, from the Committee on the Judiciary, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 4757] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the bill 

(H.R. 4757) to improve the national instant criminal background 

check system, and for other purposes, having considered the same, 

reports favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends 

that the bill as amended do pass.

CONTENTS 

Page 

The Amendment ...................................................................................................... 1

Purpose and Summary ............................................................................................ 5

Background and Need for the Legislation ............................................................. 5

Hearings ................................................................................................................... 7

Committee Consideration ........................................................................................ 8

Vote of the Committee ............................................................................................. 8

Committee Oversight Findings ............................................................................... 8

Performance Goals and Objectives ......................................................................... 9

New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures ...................................................... 9

Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate .......................................................... 9

Constitutional Authority Statement ...................................................................... 11

Section-by-Section Analysis and Discussion .......................................................... 11

Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ..................................... 13

Markup Transcript .................................................................................................. 14

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Our Lady of Peace Act’’. 

SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

The Congress finds the following: 

2

(1) Since 1994, more than 689,000 individuals have been denied a gun for 

failing a background check. 

(2) States that fail to computerize their criminal and mental illness records 

are the primary cause of delays for background checks. Helping States automate their records will reduce delays for law-abiding gun owners. 

(3) 25 States have automated less than 60 percent of their felony criminal 

conviction records. 

(4) 33 States do not automate or share disqualifying mental health records. 

(5) In 13 States, domestic violence restraining orders are not automated or 

accessible by the national instant criminal background check system. 

(6) In 15 States, no domestic violence misdemeanor records are automated 

or accessible by the national instant criminal background check system. 

TITLE I—TRANSMITTAL OF RECORDS 

SEC. 101. ENHANCEMENT OF REQUIREMENT THAT FEDERAL DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES 

PROVIDE RELEVANT INFORMATION TO THE NATIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(e)(1) of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention 

Act (18 U.S.C. 922 note) is amended—

(1) by inserting ‘‘electronically’’ before ‘‘furnish’’; and 

(2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The head of each department or 

agency shall ascertain whether the department or agency has any records relating to any person described in subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 

United States Code and on being made aware that the department or agency 

has such a record, shall make the record available to the Attorney General for 

inclusion in the system to the extent the Attorney General deems appropriate. 

The head of each department or agency, on being made aware that the basis 

under which a record was made available under this section does not apply or 

no longer applies, shall transmit a certification identifying the record (and any 

name or other relevant identifying information) to the Attorney General for removal from the system. The Attorney General shall notify the Congress on an 

annual basis as to whether the Attorney General has obtained from each such 

department or agency the information requested by the Attorney General under 

this subsection.’’. 

(b) IMMIGRATION RECORDS.—The Commissioner of the Immigration and Naturalization Service shall cooperate in providing information regarding all relevant 

records of persons disqualified from acquiring a firearm under Federal law, including but not limited to, illegal aliens, visitors to the United States on student visas, 

and visitors to the United States on tourist visas, to the Attorney General for inclusion in the national instant criminal background check system. 

SEC. 102. REQUIREMENTS TO OBTAIN WAIVER. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

a State shall be eligible to receive a waiver of the 10 percent matching requirement 

for National Criminal History Improvement Grants under the Crime Identification 

Technology Act of 1988 if the State provides at least 95 percent of the information 

described in subsection (b). The length of such a waiver shall not exceed 5 years. 

(b) ELIGIBILITY OF STATE RECORDS FOR SUBMISSION TO THE NATIONAL INSTANT

CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM.—

(1) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.—The State shall make available the following information established either through its own database or provide information to the Attorney General: 

(A) The name of and other relevant identifying information relating to 

each person disqualified from acquiring a firearm under subsection (g) or 

(n) of section 922 of title 18, United States Code, and each person disqualified from acquiring a firearm under applicable State law. 

(B) The State, on being made aware that the basis under which a 

record was made available under subparagraph (A) does not apply or no 

longer applies, shall transmit a certification identifying the record (and any 

name or other relevant identifying information) to the Attorney General for 

removal from the system. 

(C) Any information provided to the Attorney General under subparagraph (A) may be accessed only for background check purposes under section 922(t) of title 18, United States Code. 

(D) The State shall certify to the Attorney General that at least 95 percent of all information descibed in subparagraph (A) has been provided to 

the Attorney General in accordance with subparagraph (A). 

3

(2) APPLICATION TO PERSONS CONVICTED OF MISDEMEANOR CRIMES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—(A) For purposes of paragraph (1), a person disqualified 

from acquiring a firearm as referred to in that paragraph includes a person who 

has been convicted in any court of any Federal, State, or local offense that—

(i) is a misdemeanor under Federal or State law or, in a State that does 

not classify offenses as misdemeanors, is an offense punishable by imprisonment for a term of 1 year or less (or punishable by only a fine); 

(ii) has, as an element of the offense, the use or attempted use of physical force (for example, assault and battery), or the threatened use of a 

deadly weapon; and 

(iii) was committed by a current or former spouse, parent, or guardian 

of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, 

by a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as 

a spouse, parent, or guardian, (for example, the equivalent of ‘‘common-law 

marriage’’ even if such relationship is not recognized under the law), or a 

person similarly situated to a spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim (for 

example, two persons who are residing at the same location in an intimate 

relationship with the intent to make that place their home would be similarly situated to a spouse). 

(B) A person shall not be considered to have been convicted of such an offense for purposes of subparagraph (A) unless—

(i) the person is considered to have been convicted by the jurisdiction 

in which the proceeding was held; 

(ii) the person was represented by counsel in the case, or knowingly 

and intelligently waived the right to counsel in the case; and 

(iii) in the case of a prosecution for which a person was entitled to a 

jury trial in the jurisdiction in which the case was tried—

(I) the case was tried by a jury; or 

(II) the person knowingly and intelligently waived the right to have 

the case tried by a jury, by guilty plea, or otherwise. 

(C) A person shall not be considered to have been convicted of such an offense for purposes of subparagraph (A) if the conviction has been expunged or 

set aside, or is an offense for which the person has been pardoned or has had 

civil rights restored (if the law of the jurisdiction in which the proceedings were 

held provides for the loss of civil rights upon conviction of such an offense) unless the pardon, expungement, or restoration of civil rights expressly provides 

that the person may not ship, transport, possess, or receive firearms, and the 

person is not otherwise prohibited by the law of the jurisdiction in which the 

proceedings were held from receiving or possessing any firearms. 

(3) APPLICATION TO PERSONS WHO HAVE BEEN ADJUDICATED AS A MENTAL DEFECTIVE OR COMMITTED TO A MENTAL INSTITUTION.—

(A) For purposes of paragraph (1), an adjudication as a mental defective occurs when a court, board, commission, or other government entity determines that a person, as a result of marked subnormal intelligence, or 

mental illness, incompetency, condition, or disease—

(i) is a danger to himself or to others; or 

(ii) lacks the mental capacity to contract or manage his own affairs. 

(B) The term ‘‘adjudicated as a mental defective’’ includes—

(i) a finding of insanity by a court in a criminal case; and 

(ii) a finding that a person is incompetent to stand trial or is not 

guilty by reason of lack of mental responsibility pursuant to articles 

50a and 72b of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (10 U.S.C. 850a, 

876b). 

(C) EXCEPTIONS.—This paragraph does not apply to—

(i) a person—

(I) in a mental institution for observation; or 

(II) voluntarily committed to a mental institution; or 

(ii) information protected by doctor-patient privilege. 

(4) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—For any information provided under the national instant criminal background check system, the Attorney General shall 

work with States and local law enforcement and the mental health community 

to establish regulations and protocols for protecting the privacy of information 

provided to the system. In the event of a conflict between a provision of this 

Act and a provision of State law relating to privacy protection, the provision of 

State law shall control. 

(5) STATE AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, a State may designate that records transmitted under this subsection 

shall be used only to determine eligibility to purchase or possess a firearm. 

4

(c) ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORT.—Not later than January 31 of each year, the 

Attorney General shall submit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and 

the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report on the 

progress of States in automating the databases containing the information described 

in subsection (b) and in providing that information pursuant to the requirements 

of such subsection. 

SEC. 103. IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS TO STATES. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to carry out this section, the 

Attorney General shall make grants to each State, in a manner consistent with the 

national criminal history improvement program, which shall be used by the State, 

in conjunction with units of local government and State and local courts, to establish or upgrade information and identification technologies for firearms eligibility 

determinations. 

(b) USE OF GRANT AMOUNTS.—Grants under this section may only be awarded 

for the following purposes: 

(1) Building databases that are directly related to checks under the national 

instant criminal background check system (NICS), including court disposition 

and corrections records. 

(2) Assisting States in establishing or enhancing their own capacities to 

perform NICS background checks. 

(3) Improving final dispositions of criminal records. 

(4) Supplying mental health records to NICS. 

(5) Supplying court-ordered domestic restraining orders and records of domestic violence misdemeanors (as defined in section 102 of this Act) for inclusion in NICS. 

(c) CONDITION.—As a condition of receiving a grant under this section, a State 

shall specify the projects for which grant amounts will be used, and shall use such 

amounts only as specified. A State that violates this section shall be liable to the 

Attorney General for the full amount granted. 

(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

to carry out this section $250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004, 2005, and 2006. 

(e) The Federal Bureau of Investigation shall not charge a user fee for background checks pursuant to section 922(t) of title 18, United States Code. 

TITLE II—FOCUSING FEDERAL ASSISTANCE 

ON THE IMPROVEMENT OF RELEVANT 

RECORDS 

SEC. 201. CONTINUING EVALUATIONS. 

(a) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—The Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics 

shall study and evaluate the operations of the national instant criminal background 

check system. Such study and evaluation shall include, but not be limited to, compilations and analyses of the operations and record systems of the agencies and organizations participating in such system. 

(b) REPORT ON GRANTS.—Not later than January 31 of each year, the Director 

shall submit to Congress a report on the implementation of section 102(b). 

(c) REPORT ON BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than January 31 of each year, the 

Director shall submit to Congress, and to each State participating in the National 

Criminal History Improvement Program, a report of the practices of the States regarding the collection, maintenance, automation, and transmittal of identifying information relating to individuals described in subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of 

title 18, United States Code, by the State or any other agency, or any other records 

relevant to the national instant criminal background check system, that the Director 

considers to be best practices. 

TITLE III—GRANTS TO STATE COURTS FOR 

THE IMPROVEMENT IN AUTOMATION AND 

TRANSMITTAL OF DISPOSITION RECORDS 

SEC. 301. GRANTS AUTHORIZED. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to carry out this section, the 

Attorney General shall make grants to each State for use by the chief judicial officer 

5

of the State to improve the handling of proceedings related to criminal history dispositions and restraining orders. 

(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts granted under this section shall be used by the 

chief judicial officer only as follows: 

(1) For fiscal year 2004, such amounts shall be used to carry out assessments of the capabilities of the courts of the State for the automation and transmission to State and Federal record repositories the arrest and conviction 

records of such courts. 

(2) For fiscal years after 2004, such amounts shall be used to implement 

policies, systems, and procedures for the automation and transmission to State 

and Federal record repositories the arrest and conviction records of such courts. 

(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General to carry out this section $125,000,000 for each of 

fiscal years 2004, 2005, and 2006.

PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

H.R. 4757, the ‘‘Our Lady Of Peace Act,’’ provides States with the 

tools to comply with the 1968 Gun Control Act by giving States additional funds to automate and share criminal, mental health, and 

domestic violence restraining orders with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) National Instant Criminal Background Check 

System (NICS) database. 

Under this legislation, all Federal agencies will transmit relevant 

records relating to persons disqualified from acquiring a firearm 

under Federal law to the Attorney General for inclusion in NICS, 

including all records related to immigration status. 

To comply with the grants under this legislation, States will provide more thorough and up-to-date information relating to persons 

disqualified from acquiring a firearm under Federal law to the Attorney General for inclusion in the NICS. The Attorney General 

will award grants to States to improve computer systems and ensure accurate reporting, especially with regard to domestic violence 

and mental health records. 

Additionally, the legislation establishes a grant program for 

State courts to assess and improve handling of proceedings related 

to criminal history dispositions, and temporary restraining orders, 

as they relate to disqualification from firearms ownership under 

State and Federal laws. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION

In 1998, the Brady Act required the persons holding Federal 

Firearms Licenses (FFL) to initiate a background check on all persons who attempt to purchase a firearm. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) established the NICS operation center to enforce 

the provisions of the Brady Act and to manage, operate, and support NICS. 

The NICS mission is to ensure the timely transfer of firearms to 

individuals who are not specifically prohibited under Federal law 

and deny the transfer to those who are prohibited from possessing 

or receiving a firearm. 

To conduct a background check, a Federal Firearms Licensee 

(FFL) calls the National Instant Check System call center and 

gives the customer service representative the data provided by the 

customer on a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) 

form. The system searches the name in three databases, which include:

6

(1) the NICS Index that contains information on individuals 

who have been:

(a) identified specifically as being prohibited from purchasing a firearm;

(b) dishonorably discharged from the U.S. military;

(c) identified as a U.S. citizen renunciant; or

(d) identified as mentally disadvantaged or controlled substance abusers or illegal/unlawful aliens.

(2) the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) 2000 that 

contains information on wanted persons, outstanding restraining orders, deported felons, and foreign fugitives.

(3) the Interstate Identification Index (III), which contains 

criminal history records.

If there is no match, the transaction will proceed within 30 seconds after the information is entered. Approximately 72 out of 

every 100 checks are ‘‘immediate proceeds,’’ which means that the 

firearms transaction may proceed immediately. 

If there is a match, the transaction is delayed. The transaction 

goes into a delay queue where the NICS examiners receive the information and perform the necessary research. In approximately 23 

of the 28 delayed transactions a decision is made within 2 hours. 

The remaining 5 may take days. If the transaction is delayed for 

more than 3 days, Federal law allows the transaction to proceed 

before the background check is concluded. 

In February and April 2000, the General Accounting Office 

(GAO) reported the following:

(1) During a 1-year period, about 72 percent of the requests 

received a proceed response within minutes and 28 percent 

were initially delayed of the 28 percent, 23 percent of the 

checks are concluded within 2 hours and 5 percent amy 

take days.

(2) While the establishment of the newly created NICS Index 

database provides centralized access to data that was not 

previously available to State and local agencies, the Index 

does not contain all potentially disqualifying records.

(3) Because State agencies have access to additional data and 

have a better understanding of State records and laws, 

they are generally better positioned to perform NICS background checks than the FBI.

(4) In the first 10 months of the NICS implementation, 2,519 

individuals who were sold guns were later determined by 

the FBI to be prohibited from owning them. These transactions were completed because the FBI had not completed 

the background checks within 3 business days. GAO stated 

that according to the FBI officials, these transactions occur 

primarily due to a lack of arrest dispositions in the automated State criminal history records.

The legislation makes certain findings regarding the current 

NICS system and requires that states update their systems in 

those areas using additional Federal grants. The bill finds that 

states are lacking in the following areas:

7

(1) many States have not completely computerized criminal 

records;

(2) many do not have a database for involuntary mental commitments; and

(3) in many States domestic violence crimes and protective orders are not computerized.

Many States have failed to computerize all of their criminal 

records; however, progress has been made in this area through 

grant funds provided to the States from the Office of Justice Programs by the National Criminal History Improvement Program 

(NCHIP). The NCHIP program received $35 million in FY2001 plus 

an additional $8.6 million from general Crime Identification Technology Act (CITA) funds. The Administration has requested $60 

million for this program for FY2003, including $25 million to improve court records. This legislation provides additional grants to 

the States to expedite this process, penalizing States for failure to 

comply by allowing the Attorney General to reduce grant funding. 

With regard to computerization of mental health records, the Department of Justice indicates that the information contained in the 

NICS Index Mental Defectives/Commitments File contains information from the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs on persons who have been adjudicated as mentally 

defective or have been committed to a mental institution. This legislation would require all States to submit records of persons who 

have been adjudicated as mentally defective or those committed by 

a court, board, commission, or other authority for mental illness, 

alcoholism/addiction, or other reasons. Because States generally 

have laws in place to protect mental health records from disclosure, 

even to the Federal Government, this legislation will ensure that 

State privacy laws are not preempted by providing information to 

NICS. 

Fifteen States currently do not enter protection orders into National Crime Information Center (NCIC), possibly because entering 

these records into the system requires that they have someone on 

staff 7 days a week to verify them. In many counties, this information is entered by court personnel and the staff are not available 

at all times. This legislation provides grants to the courts to address this and other problems with reporting dispositions to NICS. 

The other problem with domestic violence reporting is that domestic violence is defined differently by many States than it is 

under the Brady Act. Many States do not label certain convictions 

as domestic violence convictions and other States have more expansive definitions of domestic violence than are required under Brady 

Act. This creates problems with computerizing and reporting and 

these records often require followup phone calls. This legislation 

codifies the definition of a ‘‘misdemeanor crime of domestic violence.’’

HEARINGS

No hearings were held on H.R. 4757. 

8

COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

On July 23, 2002, the Committee on the Judiciary met in open 

session and ordered favorably reported the bill, H.R. 4757, with an 

amendment, by a recorded vote of 30 to 2, a quorum being present. 

VOTE OF THE COMMITTEE

Final Passage. The motion to report favorably the bill H.R. 4757, 

was adopted. The motion to report was agreed to by a rollcall vote 

of 30–2.

ROLLCALL NO. 1 

Ayes Nays Present 

Mr. Hyde ............................................................................................................

Mr. Gekas .......................................................................................................... X

Mr. Coble ........................................................................................................... X

Mr. Smith (Texas) ............................................................................................. X

Mr. Gallegly ....................................................................................................... X

Mr. Goodlatte .................................................................................................... X

Mr. Chabot ........................................................................................................

Mr. Barr ............................................................................................................. X

Mr. Jenkins ........................................................................................................ X

Mr. Cannon ....................................................................................................... X

Mr. Graham ....................................................................................................... X

Mr. Bachus ........................................................................................................ X

Mr. Hostettler .................................................................................................... X

Mr. Green .......................................................................................................... X

Mr. Keller ........................................................................................................... X

Mr. Issa ............................................................................................................. X

Ms. Hart ............................................................................................................ X

Mr. Flake ........................................................................................................... X

Mr. Pence ..........................................................................................................

Mr. Forbes ......................................................................................................... X

Mr. Conyers ....................................................................................................... X

Mr. Frank ........................................................................................................... X

Mr. Berman ....................................................................................................... X

Mr. Boucher .......................................................................................................

Mr. Nadler ......................................................................................................... X

Mr. Scott ........................................................................................................... X

Mr. Watt ............................................................................................................ X

Ms. Lofgren ....................................................................................................... X

Ms. Jackson Lee ................................................................................................ X

Ms. Waters ........................................................................................................ X

Mr. Meehan ....................................................................................................... X

Mr. Delahunt .....................................................................................................

Mr. Wexler ......................................................................................................... X

Ms. Baldwin ...................................................................................................... X

Mr. Weiner ......................................................................................................... X

Mr. Schiff .......................................................................................................... X

Mr. Sensenbrenner, Chairman .......................................................................... X

Total ................................................................................................ 30 2

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, the Committee reports that the findings 

and recommendations of the Committee, based on oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the descriptive portions of this report. 

9

PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

H.R. 4757, the ‘‘Our Lady of Peace Act’’ authorizes funding in the 

amount of $375 million for each of FY 2003, 2004, and 2005. The 

legislation requires evaluation of the NICS system and also a compilation of the best practices of States in collection, maintenance 

and transmittal of criminal history records. 

NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY AND TAX EXPENDITURES

Clause 3(c)(2) of House rule XIII is inapplicable because this legislation does not provide new budgetary authority or increased tax 

expenditures. 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth, with respect to 

the bill, H.R. 4757, the following estimate and comparison prepared 

by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 

402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974:

U.S. CONGRESS, 

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, August 21, 2002. 

Hon. F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, Jr., Chairman, 

Committee on the Judiciary, 

House of Representatives, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 4757, the Our Lady of 

Peace Act. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark Grabowicz, who 

can be reached at 226–2860. 

Sincerely, 

DAN L. CRIPPEN, Director.

Enclosure

cc: Honorable John Conyers, Jr. 

Ranking Member 

H.R. 4757—Our Lady of Peace Act. 

SUMMARY

H.R. 4757 would authorize the appropriation of $250 million for 

each of the fiscal years 2004 through 2006 for the Attorney General 

to make grants to States to improve criminal databases used to determine individuals’ eligibility to purchase firearms. The bill also 

would authorize the appropriation of $125 million annually over 

the 2004–2006 period for grants to State courts to improve the automation and transmittal of criminal records. In addition, H.R. 

4757 would direct the Attorney General to prepare several annual 

reports on the progress of Federal and State agencies toward improving criminal records. 

Assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4757 would cost $957 million over 

10

the 2003–2007 period. This legislation would not affect direct 

spending or receipts, so pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply. 

H.R. 4757 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) 

and would benefit State and local governments. 

ESTIMATED COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

For this estimate, CBO assumes that the amounts authorized in 

H.R. 4757 will be appropriated by the start of each fiscal year and 

that outlays will follow historical spending patterns for similar 

grant programs. We estimate that the annual reports required by 

the bill would cost less than $500,000 annually, subject to the 

availability of appropriations. The estimated budgetary impact of 

H.R. 4757 is shown in the following table. The costs of this legislation fall within budget function 750 (administration of justice).

By Fiscal Year, in Millions of Dollars 

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION

Authorization Level 0 375 375 375 0

Estimated Outlays 0 83 225 356 293

PAY-AS-YOU-GO CONSIDERATIONS: 

None. 

ESTIMATED IMPACT ON STATE, LOCAL, AND TRIBAL GOVERNMENTS

H.R. 4757 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined in 

the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. The bill would benefit State 

and local governments by establishing grant programs to establish 

or upgrade information collection systems for determining individuals’ eligibility to purchase firearms and to improve court procedures related to the disposition of criminal history records and restraining orders. Any costs incurred to receive or administer such 

grants would be voluntary. 

ESTIMATED IMPACT ON THE PRIVATE-SECTOR

H.R. 4757 contains no new private-sector mandates as defined in 

UMRA. 

ESTIMATE PREPARED BY: 

Federal Costs: Mark Grabowicz (226–2860) 

Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Angela Seitz 

(225–3220) 

Impact on the Private Sector: Paige Piper/Bach (226–2949) 

ESTIMATE APPROVED BY: 

Robert A. Sunshine 

Assistant Director for Budget Analysis 

11

CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY STATEMENT

Pursuant to clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House 

of Representatives, the Committee finds the authority for this legislation in article I, section 8, clause 1 and 18 of the Constitution. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION

Section 1. Short Title. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Our Lady of Peace Act.’’

Section 2. Findings. 

The legislation makes the following findings:

(1) 95 percent of background checks are completed within 2 

hours; 72 percent within several minutes, while the remaining 5 percent are 20 times more likely to uncover a 

prohibited buyer;

(2) Since 1994, more than 689,000 individuals have been denied a gun for failing a background check;

(3) States that fail to computerize their criminal and mental 

illness records are the primary cause of delays for background checks. Helping States automate their records will 

reduce delays for law abiding gun owners.

(4) 25 States have automated less than 60 percent of their felony criminal conviction records.

(5) 33 States do not automate or share disqualifying mental 

health records.

(6) In 13 States, domestic violence restraining orders are not 

automated or accessible by NICS.

(7) In 15 States, no domestic violence misdemeanor records are 

automated or accessible by NICS. 

Section 101. Enhancement of Requirement That Federal Departments and Agencies Provide Relevant Information to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. 

This section requires Federal agencies to transmit relevant 

records related to persons disqualified under the 1968 Gun Control 

Act to possess a firearm. Specifically, the Commissioner of the INS 

shall make any relevant records available to the Attorney General 

for inclusion in NICS. 

Section 102. Transmittal of State Records to the National Instant 

Criminal Background Check System. 

This section requires the States to make all relevant information 

available regarding persons who are disqualified from possessing a 

firearm under Federal law. States who choose to obtain grants 

under this program must certify that it has provided at least 95 

percent of the information regarding disqualification in its possession. 

This section also clarifies the meaning of the domestic violence 

conviction disqualification in current law based on the definition 

currently used by the NICS system and contained in the Code of 

Federal Regulations. 

12

Section 103. Transmittal of State Mental Health Records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. 

This section requires that States who participate in this program 

provide relevant information regarding persons who have been adjudicated as mental defective or committed to a mental institution 

to the Attorney General for inclusion in NICS. 

This section clarifies the definition of mental defective and also 

clarifies that this section does not apply to persons in a mental institution for observation or voluntarily committed to a mental institution. 

Nothing in this section or this act is intended to preempt State 

medical privacy laws. The Attorney General is required to work 

with the States, local law enforcement, and the mental health community to ensure State privacy laws are protected and specific protocols for protection of these rights are put in place in transmitting 

this information. 

Section 104. Incentive Grants for Compliance. 

This section provides an additional incentive grant for States 

who comply with the requirements and provide 95 percent of the 

necessary information to the Attorney General for inclusion in 

NICS. 

Section 105. Implementation Grants to States. 

This section provides for the distribution of grants to States to 

allow them to implement the provisions of this legislation. It also 

specifies the purposes that the States may use grants for under 

this program. States must specify what project grant funds are 

used for and how much will be used. 

The legislation authorizes $250 million for grants for each of FY 

2003, 2004, and 2005. This section also specifies that all background checks performed under the NICS system will be considered law enforcement checks. 

Section 201. Continuing Evaluations. 

The Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics is authorized to 

conduct studies and evaluations of the operations of NICS. Such 

studies and evaluations shall include compilations and analyses of 

the operations and record systems of participants in the NICS system. This section also requires the Director to compile a report annually of the best practices of the States regarding the collection, 

maintenance, automation, and transmittal of Criminal History 

records to be submitted to the Congress and provided to the States. 

Section 301. Grants Authorized. 

This section authorizes appropriations in the amount of $125 

million to establish a program to allow grants to State courts to assess and improve handling of proceedings related to criminal history dispositions and temporary restraining orders as they relate to 

disqualification from firearms ownership under State and Federal 

law for FY 2004, 2005, and 2006. The grants would be provided to 

perform assessments of records systems in place and provide funds 

to improve the automation and transmission of such records. 

13

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, 

as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is printed in italics 

and existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in 

roman):

SECTION 103 OF THE BRADY HANDGUN VIOLENCE 

PREVENTION ACT 

SEC. 103. NATIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM. 

(a) * * *

* * * * * * *

(e) ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.—

(1) AUTHORITY TO OBTAIN OFFICIAL INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding any other law, the Attorney General may secure 

directly from any department or agency of the United States 

such information on persons for whom receipt of a firearm 

would violate subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 

United States Code, or State law, as is necessary to enable the 

system to operate in accordance with this section. On request 

of the Attorney General, the head of such department or agency shall electronically furnish such information to the system. 

The head of each department or agency shall ascertain whether 

the department or agency has any records relating to any person described in subsection (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18, 

United States Code and on being made aware that the department or agency has such a record, shall make the record available to the Attorney General for inclusion in the system to the 

extent the Attorney General deems appropriate. The head of 

each department or agency, on being made aware that the basis 

under which a record was made available under this section 

does not apply or no longer applies, shall transmit a certification identifying the record (and any name or other relevant 

identifying information) to the Attorney General for removal 

from the system. The Attorney General shall notify the Congress 

on an annual basis as to whether the Attorney General has obtained from each such department or agency the information requested by the Attorney General under this subsection.

* * * * * * *

14

MARKUP TRANSCRIPT

BUSINESS MEETING 

TUESDAY, JULY 23, 2002

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 

COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY, 

Washington, DC. 

The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:00 a.m., in Room 

2141, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. [Chairman of the Committee] presiding. 

* * * * * * *

Now, pursuant to notice, I call up the bill H.R. 4757, the ‘‘Our 

Lady of Peace Act,’’ for purposes of markup and move its favorable 

recommendation to the House. Without objection, the bill will be 

considered as read and open for amendment at any point. 

[The bill, H.R. 4757, follows:]

15

1

I

107TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4757

To improve the national instant criminal background check system, and for

other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MAY 16, 2002

Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York (for herself, Mr. DINGELL, Mr. KIRK, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, Mr. GILMAN, Mrs. TAUSCHER, Mrs.

MORELLA, Mr. ANDREWS, Mrs. ROUKEMA, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. CASTLE,

Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. FRANK, Ms. NORTON, Mr. MOORE, Ms. BROWN of

Florida, Ms. WOOLSEY, Mr. BLAGOJEVICH, Ms. CARSON of Indiana, Ms.

SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. MEEHAN, Mr. NADLER, Mrs. LOWEY,

Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. HOEFFEL, Ms. RIVERS, Mr. WEXLER, Mr.

MCGOVERN, Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. FORD, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr.

HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. WEINER, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD,

Ms. WATERS, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. RUSH, Mr.

CLAY, Mr. ROTHMAN, Ms. DELAURO, and Mr. SHERMAN) introduced the

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To improve the national instant criminal background check

system, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Our Lady of Peace

5 Act’’.


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•HR 4757 IH

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

2 The Congress finds the following:

3 (1) Since 1994, more than 689,000 individuals

4 have been denied a gun for failing a background

5 check.

6 (2) States that fail to computerize their crimi7 nal and mental illness records are the primary cause

8 of delays for background checks. Helping States

9 automate their records will reduce delays for law10 abiding gun owners.

11 (3) 25 States have automated less than 60 per12 cent of their felony criminal conviction records.

13 (4) 33 States do not automate or share dis14 qualifying mental health records.

15 (5) In 13 States, domestic violence restraining

16 orders are not automated or accessible by the na17 tional instant criminal background check system.

18 (6) In 15 States, no domestic violence mis19 demeanor records are automated or accessible by the

20 national instant criminal background check system.


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3

•HR 4757 IH

1 TITLE I—TRANSMITTAL OF

2 RECORDS

3 SEC. 101. ENHANCEMENT OF REQUIREMENT THAT FED4 ERAL DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES PRO5 VIDE RELEVANT INFORMATION TO THE NA6 TIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND

7 CHECK SYSTEM.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(e)(1) of the Brady

9 Handgun Violence Prevention Act (18 U.S.C. 922 note)

10 is amended—

11 (1) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting ‘‘shall, not

12 less frequently than quarterly,’’;

13 (2) by inserting ‘‘electronically’’ before ‘‘fur14 nish’’; and

15 (3) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The

16 head of each such department or agency shall ascer17 tain whether the department or agency has any

18 records on any person described in any paragraph of

19 section 922(g), title 18, United States Code, and on

20 being made aware that the department or agency of

21 such a record, shall transmit a copy of the record to

22 the Attorney General for inclusion in the system.

23 The Attorney General shall notify the Congress on

24 a quarterly basis as to whether the Attorney General

25 has obtained from each such department or agency


I4757.AAD
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4

•HR 4757 IH

1 the information required to be provided to the Attor2 ney General under this subsection.’’.

3 (b) IMMIGRATION RECORDS.—The Commissioner of

4 the Immigration and Naturalization Service shall imme5 diately transmit all relevant records of persons disqualified

6 from acquiring a firearm under Federal law, including but

7 not limited to, illegal aliens, visitors to the United States

8 on student visas, and visitors to the United States on tour9 ist visas, to the Attorney General for inclusion in the na10 tional instant criminal background check system.

11 SEC. 102. TRANSMITTAL OF STATE RECORDS TO THE NA12 TIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND

13 CHECK SYSTEM.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—A State that does not meet the

15 requirements of this section shall be subject to section

16 104.

17 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The requirements of this sec18 tion are as follows:

19 (1) The State shall provide the name of and

20 other relevant identifying information relating to

21 persons disqualified from acquiring a firearm under

22 Federal or State law to the Attorney General for in23 clusion in the national instant criminal background

24 check system.


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5

•HR 4757 IH

1 (2) Any information provided to the Attorney

2 General under paragraph (1) may be accessed only

3 by personnel legally entitled to access such system.

4 (3) The State shall certify to the Attorney Gen5 eral that at least 95 percent of all information under

6 paragraph (1) has been provided to the Attorney

7 General under paragraph (1).

8 SEC. 103. TRANSMITTAL OF STATE MENTAL HEALTH

9 RECORDS TO THE NATIONAL INSTANT CRIMI10 NAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM.

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—A State that does not meet the

12 requirement of this section shall be subject to section 104.

13 (b) REQUIREMENT.—The requirement of this section

14 is that the State shall provide the name of and other rel15 evant identifying information relating to persons adju16 dicated as mental defective or those committed to mental

17 institutions to the Attorney General for inclusion in the

18 national instant criminal background check system.

19 (c) DEFINITION.—For purposes of subsection (b), an

20 adjudication as a mental defective occurs when a court,

21 board, commission, or other lawful authority determines

22 that an individual is mentally retarded or of marked sub23 normal intelligence, mentally ill, or mentally incompetent,

24 including—


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6

•HR 4757 IH

1 (1) defendants in criminal cases adjudicated as

2 not guilty by reason of insanity, or found incom3 petent to stand trial;

4 (2) individuals found to be a danger to others

5 as a result of a mental disorder or illness;

6 (3) individuals involuntarily committed to a

7 mental institution by a court, board, commission, or

8 other authority;

9 (4) individuals committed for reasons other

10 than mental defectiveness or mental illness; and

11 (5) individuals committed within the past 5

12 years to a mental institution—

13 (A) for treatment of alcoholism; or

14 (B) as an unlawful user of, or person ad15 dicted to, any controlled substance (as defined

16 in section 102 of the Controlled Substances

17 Act), provided that such unlawful use has oc18 curred recently enough to indicate that the indi19 vidual is actively engaged in such conduct.

20 (d) EXCEPTION.—This section does not apply to—

21 (1) a person—

22 (A) in a mental institution for observation;

23 or

24 (B) voluntarily committed to a mental in25 stitution; or


I4757.AAG
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•HR 4757 IH

1 (2) information protected by doctor-patient

2 privilege.

3 (e) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—The Attorney General

4 shall work with State and local law enforcement and the

5 mental health community to establish protocols for pro6 tecting the privacy of information provided in this section.

7 Such protocols shall be in addition to any other applicable

8 laws for protecting the privacy of such information.

9 (e) COMMENCEMENT OF TRANSMITTAL.—Notwith10 standing subsection (c), the State shall begin to comply

11 with subsection (b) not later than January 1, 2005. If

12 such compliance occurs before the establishment of proto13 cols under subsection (c), the Attorney General shall en14 sure that any information provided under this section may

15 be accessed only by personnel authorized by law to access

16 the national instant criminal background check system.

17 SEC. 104. PENALTIES FOR NONCOMPLIANCE.

18 (a) ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORT.—Not later than

19 January 31 of each year, the Attorney General shall sub20 mit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and

21 the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep22 resentatives a report on the progress of States in auto23 mating the databases containing information under sec24 tions 102 and 103 and in providing that information pur25 suant to the requirements of sections 102 and 103.


I4757.AAH
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•HR 4757 IH

1 (b) PENALTIES.—

2 (1) AFTER THREE YEARS.—During the period

3 beginning three years after the date of the enact4 ment of this Act and ending five years after the date

5 of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General

6 may (but need not), for any State that fails to pro7 vide under sections 102 and 103 at least 60 percent

8 of the information required to be provided under

9 those sections, decline to allocate to that State up to

10 5 percent of the amounts that would otherwise be al11 located to that State under section 506 of the Omni12 bus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42

13 U.S.C. 3756).

14 (2) AFTER FIVE YEARS.—After the expiration

15 of the period referred to in paragraph (1), the Attor16 ney General shall, for any State that fails to provide

17 under sections 102 and 103 at least 95 percent of

18 the information required to be provided under those

19 sections, decline to allocate to that State 10 percent

20 of the amounts that would otherwise be allocated to

21 that State under section 506 of the Omnibus Crime

22 Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C.

23 3765).

24 (3) WAIVER BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.—The At25 torney General may waive the applicability of paraVerDate 0ct 09 2002 04:06 Oct 16, 2002 Jkt 019006 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6601 E:\HR\OC\HR748.XXX HR748

I4757.AAI
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•HR 4757 IH

1 graph (2) to a State if that State provides compel2 ling evidence of its inability to meet the require3 ments of sections 102 and 103.

4 (c) REALLOCATION.—Any funds that are not allo5 cated for failure to comply with the requirements of sub6 section (b) shall be reallocated to States that meet such

7 requirements.

8 SEC. 105. IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS TO STATES.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to

10 carry out this section, the Attorney General shall make

11 grants to each State, in a manner consistent with the na12 tional criminal history improvement program, which shall

13 be used by the State, in conjunction with units of local

14 government and State and local courts, to establish or up15 grade information and identification technologies for fire16 arms eligibility determinations.

17 (b) USE OF GRANT AMOUNTS.—Grants under this

18 section may only be awarded for the following purposes:

19 (1) Building databases that are directly related

20 to checks under the national instant criminal back21 ground check system (NICS), including court dis22 position and corrections records.

23 (2) Assisting States in establishing or enhanc24 ing their own capacities to perform NICS back25 ground checks.


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•HR 4757 IH

1 (3) Improving final dispositions of criminal

2 records.

3 (4) Supplying mental health records to NICS.

4 (5) Supplying domestic violence restraining or5 ders and temporary restraining orders for inclusion

6 in NICS.

7 (c) CONDITION.—As a condition of receiving a grant

8 under this section, a State shall specify the projects for

9 which grant amounts will be used, and shall use such

10 amounts only as specified. A State that violates this sec11 tion shall be liable to the Attorney General for the full

12 amount granted.

13 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is

14 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section

15 $250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2003, 2004, and

16 2005.

17 TITLE II—FOCUSING FEDERAL

18 ASSISTANCE ON THE IM19 PROVEMENT OF RELEVANT

20 RECORDS

21 SEC. 201. CONTINUING EVALUATIONS.

22 (a) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—The Director of the

23 Bureau of Justice Statistics shall study and evaluate the

24 operations of the national instant criminal background

25 check system. Such study and evaluation shall include, but


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11

•HR 4757 IH

1 not be limited to, compilations and analyses of the oper2 ations and record systems of the agencies and organiza3 tions participating in such system.

4 (b) REPORT ON GRANTS.—Not later than January

5 31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Congress

6 a report on the implementation of sections 102 and 103

7 of this Act.

8 (c) REPORT ON BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than

9 January 31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Con10 gress, and to each State participating in the National

11 Criminal History Improvement Program, a report of the

12 practices of the States regarding the collection, mainte13 nance, automation, and transmittal of identifying informa14 tion relating to individuals described in section 922(g) of

15 title 18, United States Code, by the State or any other

16 agency, or any other records relevant to the national in17 stant criminal background check system, that the Director

18 considers to be best practices.


I4757.AAL
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12

•HR 4757 IH

1 TITLE III—GRANTS TO STATE

2 COURTS FOR THE IMPROVE3 MENT IN AUTOMATION AND

4 TRANSMITTAL OF DISPOSI5 TION RECORDS

6 SEC. 301. GRANTS AUTHORIZED.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to

8 carry out this section, the Attorney General shall make

9 grants to each State for use by the chief judicial officer

10 of the State to improve the handling of proceedings related

11 to criminal history dispositions and temporary restraining

12 orders as they relate to disqualification from firearms

13 ownership under State and Federal laws.

14 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts granted under this

15 section shall be used by the chief judicial officer only as

16 follows:

17 (1) For fiscal year 2003, such amounts shall be

18 used to carry out assessments of the capabilities of

19 the courts of the State for the automation and

20 transmission to State and Federal record reposi21 tories the arrest and conviction records of such

22 courts to the extent relevant to disqualification from

23 firearms ownership under State and Federal laws.

24 (2) For fiscal years after 2003, such amounts

25 shall be used to implement policies, systems, and


I4757.AAM
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•HR 4757 IH

1 procedures for the automation and transmission to

2 State and Federal record repositories the arrest and

3 conviction records of such courts to the extent rel4 evant to disqualification from firearms ownership

5 under State and Federal laws.

6 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

7 are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General

8 to carry out this section $125,000,000 for each of fiscal

9 years 2003, 2004, and 2005.

Æ


I4757.AAN
28

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. And the Chair recognizes himself for 

5 minutes to explain the bill. 

This bill was proposed by Representative McCarthy and Representative Dingell, focusing on some legitimate failings in our current National Instant Check System for gun purchases. However, 

as originally drafted, the legislation’s approach to these issues created concerns regarding protections for federalism and privacy. I 

have worked with both the authors to put forth a substitute 

amendment which addresses these concerns and which has broad 

bipartisan support. 

The legislation makes certain findings regarding the current 

NICS system and the failure of States to provide current information regarding individuals who may be disqualified from purchasing a firearm. The bill finds that States are lacking in the following areas: Many have not completely computerized their criminal records. Many do not have a database for involuntary mental 

commitments. And in many States, domestic violence crimes and 

protective orders are not computerized. 

These failings by the States to provide complete and accurate information to allow for thorough background checks under NICS has 

resulted in delays in processing background checks for firearm purchases. Helping States to improve their recordkeeping and to automate their systems will help reduce delays for law-abiding gun purchasers. 

Many States and county courthouses continue to resist pressure 

to automate their records, either because it’s a difficult task or because it will require funds they do not have. This legislation provides additional funds for the States to update and improve their 

records. 

The original legislation penalized the States for not participating 

in the program. The substitute I am offering today removes the 

penalties in favor of incentive grants. Essentially, the substitute removes the stick in favor of a carrot. States that chose to take advantage of the funds offered to implement these changes will receive additional funds to keep their records up-to-date. 

The incentive grant allows the Attorney General to waive all 

matching requirements for grants provided to a State under the 

National Criminal History Improvement Program. If after 5 years 

the State has met the requirements of this legislation by automating its systems to make records available for NICS checks, it 

will receive additional funds in the form of a waiver of the required 

State match for participation in NCHIP for 5 years. This will allow 

a participant State to continue to keep its own criminal history 

records up-to-date for other law enforcement purposes. 

The legislation provides funds to help the States ensure that firearms do not fall into the wrong hands and has the added bonus of 

helping States improve their criminal history databases. 

I urge all Members to support the substitute and to report the 

bill favorably. 

The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan, Mr. Conyers. 

Mr. CONYERS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Members, a major problem with the instant check system has 

been the incomplete records of State and local governments. Our 

Federal law requires that a gun sale proceed after 3 business days 

even if a background check is inconclusive. A number of felons, fuVerDate 0ct 09 2002 04:06 Oct 16, 2002 Jkt 019006 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6601 E:\HR\OC\HR748.XXX HR748
29

gitives, stalkers receive guns that we later have to go back and retrieve, if we can. 

Now, 95 percent of all background checks are completed within 

24 hours. Because of incomplete records, the remaining 5 percent 

take more time. Those 5 percent are 20 times more likely to be the 

application by a felon, fugitive, or stalker. 

I asked the GAO to study this, with particular reference to domestic violence. And I learned that nearly 3,000 convicted 

batterers, child abusers, were able to purchase firearms between 

the years 1998 and 2001, notwithstanding Federal laws designed 

to prevent this. Nearly 10 percent of the annual homicides involved 

the killing of a spouse or partner, almost all of the victims women 

and most were killed by a firearm. 

Now, one obvious part of the solution is to allow more time for 

background checks. But another part of the solution is this bill. It 

will provide incentives for States to provide more complete records 

to the Federal Government. This will result in faster and smarter 

background checks. 

My thanks to my colleague from New York, Ms. McCarthy, the 

dean of the House, John Dingell, and others who have worked with 

us on this bill. And I think their willingness to take constructive 

suggestions have made this a better piece of legislation, which I 

recommend to the Committee. 

Thank you. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman yields back the balance of his time. 

Are there any amendments? 

The Chair has an amendment in the nature of a substitute. The 

clerk will report the amendment. 

The CLERK. Amendment in the nature of a substitute to H.R. 

4757, offered by Mr. Sensenbrenner. Strike all after the enacting 

clause and insert the following: Section 1, short title. This act may 

be cited—— Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Without objection, the amendment 

in the nature of a substitute is considered as read. 

[The amendment follows:]

30 H.L.C.

AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE

TO H.R. 4757

OFFERED BY MR. SENSENBRENNER

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the

following:

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Our Lady of Peace

3 Act’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

5 The Congress finds the following:

6 (1) Since 1994, more than 689,000 individuals

7 have been denied a gun for failing a background

8 check.

9 (2) States that fail to computerize their crimi10 nal and mental illness records are the primary cause

11 of delays for background checks. Helping States

12 automate their records will reduce delays for law13 abiding gun owners.

14 (3) 25 States have automated less than 60 per15 cent of their felony criminal conviction records.

16 (4) 33 States do not automate or share dis17 qualifying mental health records.


A4757.AAB
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2

H.L.C.

1 (5) In 13 States, domestic violence restraining

2 orders are not automated or accessible by the na3 tional instant criminal background check system.

4 (6) In 15 States, no domestic violence mis5 demeanor records are automated or accessible by the

6 national instant criminal background check system.

7 TITLE I—TRANSMITTAL OF

8 RECORDS

9 SEC. 101. ENHANCEMENT OF REQUIREMENT THAT FED10 ERAL DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES PRO11 VIDE RELEVANT INFORMATION TO THE NA12 TIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACKGROUND

13 CHECK SYSTEM.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 103(e)(1) of the Brady

15 Handgun Violence Prevention Act (18 U.S.C. 922 note)

16 is amended—

17 (1) by inserting ‘‘electronically’’ before ‘‘fur18 nish’’; and

19 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The

20 head of each department or agency shall ascertain

21 whether the department or agency has any records

22 relating to any person described in subsection (g) or

23 (n) of section 922 of title 18, United States Code

24 and on being made aware that the department or

25 agency has such a record, shall make the record


A4757.AAC
32

3

H.L.C.

1 available to the Attorney General for inclusion in the

2 system to the extent the Attorney General deems ap3 propriate. The head of each department or agency,

4 on being made aware that the basis under which a

5 record was made available under this section does

6 not apply or no longer applies, shall transmit a cer7 tification identifying the record (and any name or

8 other relevant identifying information) to the Attor9 ney General for removal from the system. The Attor10 ney General shall notify the Congress on an annual

11 basis as to whether the Attorney General has ob12 tained from each such department or agency the in13 formation requested by the Attorney General under

14 this subsection.’’.

15 (b) IMMIGRATION RECORDS.—The Commissioner of

16 the Immigration and Naturalization Service shall cooper17 ate in providing information regarding all relevant records

18 of persons disqualified from acquiring a firearm under

19 Federal law, including but not limited to, illegal aliens,

20 visitors to the United States on student visas, and visitors

21 to the United States on tourist visas, to the Attorney Gen22 eral for inclusion in the national instant criminal back23 ground check system.


A4757.AAD
33

4

H.L.C.

1 SEC. 102. REQUIREMENTS TO OBTAIN WAIVER.

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 5 years after the date

3 of the enactment of this Act, a State shall be eligible to

4 receive a waiver of the 10 percent matching requirement

5 for National Criminal History Improvement Grants under

6 the Crime Identification Technology Act of 1988 if the

7 State provides at least 95 percent of the information de8 scribed in subsection (b). The length of such a waiver shall

9 not exceed 5 years.

10 (b) ELIGIBILITY OF STATE RECORDS FOR SUBMIS11 SION TO THE NATIONAL INSTANT CRIMINAL BACK12 GROUND CHECK SYSTEM.—

13 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR ELIGIBILITY.—The

14 State shall make available the following information

15 established either through its own database or pro16 vide information to the Attorney General:

17 (A) The name of and other relevant identi18 fying information relating to each person dis19 qualified from acquiring a firearm under sub20 section (g) or (n) of section 922 of title 18,

21 United States Code, and each person disquali22 fied from acquiring a firearm under applicable

23 State law.

24 (B) The State, on being made aware that

25 the basis under which a record was made avail26 able under subparagraph (A) does not apply or


A4757.AAE
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5

H.L.C.

1 no longer applies, shall transmit a certification

2 identifying the record (and any name or other

3 relevant identifying information) to the Attor4 ney General for removal from the system.

5 (C) Any information provided to the Attor6 ney General under subparagraph (A) may be

7 accessed only for background check purposes

8 under section 922(t) of title 18, United States

9 Code.

10 (D) The State shall certify to the Attorney

11 General that at least 95 percent of all informa12 tion descibed in subparagraph (A) has been

13 provided to the Attorney General in accordance

14 with subparagraph (A).

15 (2) APPLICATION TO PERSONS CONVICTED OF

16 MISDEMEANOR CRIMES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.—

17 (A) For purposes of paragraph (1), a person dis18 qualified from acquiring a firearm as referred to in

19 that paragraph includes a person who has been con20 victed in any court of any Federal, State, or local of21 fense that—

22 (i) is a misdemeanor under Federal or

23 State law or, in a State that does not classify

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A4757.AAF
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6

H.L.C.

1 able by imprisonment for a term of 1 year or

2 less (or punishable by only a fine);

3 (ii) has, as an element of the offense, the

4 use or attempted use of physical force (for ex5 ample, assault and battery), or the threatened

6 use of a deadly weapon; and

7 (iii) was committed by a current or former

8 spouse, parent, or guardian of the victim, by a

9 person with whom the victim shares a child in

10 common, by a person who is cohabitating with

11 or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse,

12 parent, or guardian, (for example, the equiva13 lent of ‘‘common-law marriage’’ even if such re14 lationship is not recognized under the law), or

15 a person similarly situated to a spouse, parent,

16 or guardian of the victim (for example, two per17 sons who are residing at the same location in

18 an intimate relationship with the intent to make

19 that place their home would be similarly situ20 ated to a spouse).

21 (B) A person shall not be considered to have

22 been convicted of such an offense for purposes of

23 subparagraph (A) unless—


A4757.AAG
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7

H.L.C.

1 (i) the person is considered to have been

2 convicted by the jurisdiction in which the pro3 ceeding was held;

4 (ii) the person was represented by counsel

5 in the case, or knowingly and intelligently

6 waived the right to counsel in the case; and

7 (iii) in the case of a prosecution for which

8 a person was entitled to a jury trial in the juris9 diction in which the case was tried—

10 (I) the case was tried by a jury; or

11 (II) the person knowingly and intel12 ligently waived the right to have the case

13 tried by a jury, by guilty plea, or other14 wise.

15 (C) A person shall not be considered to have

16 been convicted of such an offense for purposes of

17 subparagraph (A) if the conviction has been ex18 punged or set aside, or is an offense for which the

19 person has been pardoned or has had civil rights re20 stored (if the law of the jurisdiction in which the

21 proceedings were held provides for the loss of civil

22 rights upon conviction of such an offense) unless the

23 pardon, expungement, or restoration of civil rights

24 expressly provides that the person may not ship,

25 transport, possess, or receive firearms, and the perVerDate 0ct 09 2002 04:06 Oct 16, 2002 Jkt 019006 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6601 E:\HR\OC\HR748.XXX HR748

A4757.AAH
37

8

H.L.C.

1 son is not otherwise prohibited by the law of the ju2 risdiction in which the proceedings were held from

3 receiving or possessing any firearms.

4 (3) APPLICATION TO PERSONS WHO HAVE BEEN

5 ADJUDICATED AS A MENTAL DEFECTIVE OR COM6 MITTED TO A MENTAL INSTITUTION.—

7 (A) For purposes of paragraph (1), an ad8 judication as a mental defective occurs when a

9 court, board, commission, or other government

10 entity determines that a person, as a result of

11 marked subnormal intelligence, or mental ill12 ness, incompetency, condition, or disease—

13 (i) is a danger to himself or to others;

14 or

15 (ii) lacks the mental capacity to con16 tract or manage his own affairs.

17 (B) The term ‘‘adjudicated as a mental de18 fective’’ includes—

19 (i) a finding of insanity by a court in

20 a criminal case; and

21 (ii) a finding that a person is incom22 petent to stand trial or is not guilty by

23 reason of lack of mental responsibility pur24 suant to articles 50a and 72b of the UniVerDate 0ct 09 2002 04:06 Oct 16, 2002 Jkt 019006 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6601 E:\HR\OC\HR748.XXX HR748

A4757.AAI
38

9

H.L.C.

1 form Code of Military Justice (10 U.S.C.

2 850a, 876b).

3 (C) EXCEPTIONS.—This paragraph does

4 not apply to—

5 (i) a person—

6 (I) in a mental institution for ob7 servation; or

8 (II) voluntarily committed to a

9 mental institution; or

10 (ii) information protected by doctor11 patient privilege.

12 (4) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—For any informa13 tion provided under the national instant criminal

14 background check system, the Attorney General

15 shall work with States and local law enforcement

16 and the mental health community to establish regu17 lations and protocols for protecting the privacy of in18 formation provided to the system. In the event of a

19 conflict between a provision of this Act and a provi20 sion of State law relating to privacy protection, the

21 provision of State law shall control.

22 (5) STATE AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding any

23 other provision of this subsection, a State may des24 ignate that records transmitted under this subVerDate 0ct 09 2002 04:06 Oct 16, 2002 Jkt 019006 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6601 E:\HR\OC\HR748.XXX HR748

A4757.AAJ
39

10

H.L.C.

1 section shall be used only to determine eligibility to

2 purchase or possess a firearm.

3 (c) ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORT.—Not later than

4 January 31 of each year, the Attorney General shall sub5 mit to the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and

6 the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep7 resentatives a report on the progress of States in auto8 mating the databases containing the information described

9 in subsection (b) and in providing that information pursu10 ant to the requirements of such subsection.

11 SEC. 103. IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS TO STATES.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to

13 carry out this section, the Attorney General shall make

14 grants to each State, in a manner consistent with the na15 tional criminal history improvement program, which shall

16 be used by the State, in conjunction with units of local

17 government and State and local courts, to establish or up18 grade information and identification technologies for fire19 arms eligibility determinations.

20 (b) USE OF GRANT AMOUNTS.—Grants under this

21 section may only be awarded for the following purposes:

22 (1) Building databases that are directly related

23 to checks under the national instant criminal back24 ground check system (NICS), including court dis25 position and corrections records.


A4757.AAK
40

11

H.L.C.

1 (2) Assisting States in establishing or enhanc2 ing their own capacities to perform NICS back3 ground checks.

4 (3) Improving final dispositions of criminal

5 records.

6 (4) Supplying mental health records to NICS.

7 (5) Supplying court-ordered domestic restrain8 ing orders and records of domestic violence mis9 demeanors (as defined in section 102 of this Act) for

10 inclusion in NICS.

11 (c) CONDITION.—As a condition of receiving a grant

12 under this section, a State shall specify the projects for

13 which grant amounts will be used, and shall use such

14 amounts only as specified. A State that violates this sec15 tion shall be liable to the Attorney General for the full

16 amount granted.

17 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is

18 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section

19 $250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004, 2005, and

20 2006.

21 (e) The Federal Bureau of Investigation shall not

22 charge a user fee for background checks pursuant to sec23 tion 922(t) of title 18, United States Code.


A4757.AAL
41

12

H.L.C.

1 TITLE II—FOCUSING FEDERAL

2 ASSISTANCE ON THE IM3 PROVEMENT OF RELEVANT

4 RECORDS

5 SEC. 201. CONTINUING EVALUATIONS.

6 (a) EVALUATION REQUIRED.—The Director of the

7 Bureau of Justice Statistics shall study and evaluate the

8 operations of the national instant criminal background

9 check system. Such study and evaluation shall include, but

10 not be limited to, compilations and analyses of the oper11 ations and record systems of the agencies and organiza12 tions participating in such system.

13 (b) REPORT ON GRANTS.—Not later than January

14 31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Congress

15 a report on the implementation of section 102(b).

16 (c) REPORT ON BEST PRACTICES.—Not later than

17 January 31 of each year, the Director shall submit to Con18 gress, and to each State participating in the National

19 Criminal History Improvement Program, a report of the

20 practices of the States regarding the collection, mainte21 nance, automation, and transmittal of identifying informa22 tion relating to individuals described in subsection (g) or

23 (n) of section 922 of title 18, United States Code, by the

24 State or any other agency, or any other records relevant


A4757.AAM
42

13

H.L.C.

1 to the national instant criminal background check system,

2 that the Director considers to be best practices.

3 TITLE III—GRANTS TO STATE

4 COURTS FOR THE IMPROVE5 MENT IN AUTOMATION AND

6 TRANSMITTAL OF DISPOSI7 TION RECORDS

8 SEC. 301. GRANTS AUTHORIZED.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made available to

10 carry out this section, the Attorney General shall make

11 grants to each State for use by the chief judicial officer

12 of the State to improve the handling of proceedings related

13 to criminal history dispositions and restraining orders.

14 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts granted under this

15 section shall be used by the chief judicial officer only as

16 follows:

17 (1) For fiscal year 2004, such amounts shall be

18 used to carry out assessments of the capabilities of

19 the courts of the State for the automation and

20 transmission to State and Federal record reposi21 tories the arrest and conviction records of such

22 courts.

23 (2) For fiscal years after 2004, such amounts

24 shall be used to implement policies, systems, and

25 procedures for the automation and transmission to


A4757.AAN
43

14

H.L.C.

1 State and Federal record repositories the arrest and

2 conviction records of such courts.

3 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

4 are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General

5 to carry out this section $125,000,000 for each of fiscal

6 years 2004, 2005, and 2006.


A4757.AAO
44

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The Chair will recognize himself for 

a brief 5 minutes. 

I discussed most of the features of the amendment in the nature 

of a substitute during the course of my opening statement. Let me 

state that the major change is that it turns the penalty into an incentive grant to have States bring their criminal justice records upto-date and compatible with NICS checks. It also addresses some 

concerns from immigration groups relative to visa information 

being stored in the records and contains some provisions that mental health advocacy groups were concerned about relative to the 

privacy of involuntary commitment records. 

I believe that this has bipartisan support. It makes a good bill 

better, and I would hope that it is adopted. And I yield to the gentleman from Michigan. 

Mr. CONYERS. Thank you. I merely wanted to concur with the 

improvements that have been brought to the bill by your substitute. Thank you. 

Mr. SCOTT. Mr. Chairman? 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The Chair yields back the balance of 

his time. 

The gentleman from Virginia, Mr. Scott. 

Mr. SCOTT. Move to strike the last word. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman is recognized for 5 

minutes. 

Mr. SCOTT. Mr. Chairman, we have a dual goal in dealing with 

this issue. One is to provide security, national security, by identifying those who are disqualified from buying firearms. We want to 

do that with providing as little aggravation to those can lawfully 

purchase firearms. This bill and the substitute make sure that 

those disqualified are in fact identified and disqualified. 

It has the added advantage of reducing the aggravation to those 

who can legally purchase firearms. That’s why those on both sides 

of the gun issue support the legislation. It does this by helping 

States give the Federal Government information so that they can 

comply with the law. The information collected is information by 

law that is supposed to be collected already. 

I want to thank the sponsors of the bill and, Mr. Chairman, your 

work in meticulously balancing the legislation so it tracks present 

law without igniting new debates on gun control. By passing this 

bill and the substitute, we can increase security and reduce aggravation. I hope that we would support the substitute and the bill. 

I yield back. 

Mr. HOSTETTLER. Mr. Chairman? 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. For what purpose does the gentleman from Indiana seek recognition? 

Mr. HOSTETTLER. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman is recognized for 5 

minutes. 

Mr. HOSTETTLER. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the opportunity 

and want to speak on the bill overall and the amendment in the 

nature of a substitute. 

In the findings of the bill, we see that—are stated, since 1994, 

more than 689,000 individuals have been denied a gun for failing 

a background check. And we are to believe, which we can’t, that 

there have been 689,000 arrests with a significant portion of that 

45

being followed by indictments or convictions. The reason being is 

that, in order to get to a period of a purchase of a gun, to go 

through the instacheck system, you have to have already filled out 

a form. In that form that has been present for decades, certain information is requested of the potential purchaser, such as a criminal history, history of mental illness, history of domestic violence, 

and the like. 

If they answer affirmatively to any of those questions, then 

there’s no need to do an instacheck system. They fail the process, 

and they are denied the purchase of a gun. 

However, if they falsely fill out that form, they then are subject 

to the NICS check, and then it is found out from some that they 

in fact have lied on the form. 

Well, they have committed a Federal offense by falsely filling out 

that form. So the system is not working as such, because we 

haven’t seen that. 

It is working to deny, however, hundreds of law-abiding citizens 

in my District the ability to purchase a gun. For example, they may 

have the same name as an individual who has been convicted of 

a crime. They may have a last name or first name that is similar 

to the name of an individual who has been convicted of a crime or 

a domestic violence offense. And so the name has been incorrectly 

put into the database. And so they are denied the purchase of a 

gun. 

And in fact, in the findings, we don’t know how many of the 

689,000 individuals are actually criminals and how many are actually law-abiding citizens that have been denied purchase of a gun. 

It’s been long known that gun control laws don’t work, because 

criminals don’t follow them. That’s why we generally call them 

criminals. 

And it’s also been suggested that violent crime is down because 

of gun control laws like the Brady Act or the so-called assault 

weapon ban. But in fact, studies have proven that violent crime is 

down not because some criminals have become more selective in 

their adherence to certain laws, but because violent criminals are 

remaining in prison longer and, therefore, not able to repeat. 

And, Mr. Chairman, I heard that there has been a coalition—we 

heard it already this morning—that has been created in support of 

this bill. While I have received a letter from a group that refers to 

itself as Americans for Gun Safety, founded by a former board 

member of Handgun Control, Inc.—he realized that the gun control 

issue was not working for them politically, so they decided to 

change their name and keep the same players. They’re called 

Americans for Gun Safety, in support of this bill. 

Mr. Chairman, do you know if there is any group that generally 

opposes such gun control provisions as this who are part of the coalition who support this bill? 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. If the gentleman will yield, I have in 

my hand a letter from the National Rifle Association supporting 

the legislation——

Mr. HOSTETTLER. I thank the gentleman. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER.—for which I ask unanimous consent 

to be inserted in the record. And without objection, it will be inserted in the record. 

[The material referred to follows:]

46


Cox.eps
47

Mr. HOSTETTLER. I thank the gentleman. 

And seeing that the National Rifle Association and former board 

members of Handgun Control, Inc. are now supporting the legislation, I appreciate the information and yield back the balance of my 

time. 

Mr. CONYERS. Would the gentleman yield? 

Mr. HOSTETTLER. Yes, I will yield. 

Mr. CONYERS. I thank the gentleman. 

You know, this is another example of the NRA going soft. I 

mean, for goodness’ sake, what are these guys out here for? I mean, 

here you and the gentleman from Georgia have bills repealing 

every known gun law, and where are they on this kind of situation, 

where you’re standing up for your constituents who have been denied the right to a gun for 1 or 2 days? 

Mr. HOSTETTLER. No, sir. Not only do I not have bills pending 

that would, in your words, repeal all known gun control laws, but 

they have been denied for more. They have simply walked out on 

the purchase of a gun. The gentleman doesn’t know what the circumstances under which I’m talking, and I do. 

And the simple fact of the matter is that they have been denied, 

and they don’t purchase the gun. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman’s time has expired. 

Mr. CANNON. Mr. Chairman? 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman from Utah, Mr. Cannon. 

Mr. CANNON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I move to strike the last 

word. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman is recognized for 5 

minutes. 

Mr. CANNON. Mr. Chairman, I think we generally agree that 

keeping better and more accessible records of those disqualified by 

current law from owing a firearm is a good thing. But I’ve long 

been concerned about the Department of Justice and other agencies 

keeping records of law-abiding Americans who pass such background checks even after they have been approved. 

In the new era of homeland security and consolidation of information, we all ought to be concerned about this issue, whatever 

one’s view of gun control and second amendment rights might be. 

I had planned to introduce language that previously passed this 

Committee in other legislation as an amendment today. Instead, I 

would just like to ask you, Mr. Chairman, to work with me on report language clarifying that this bill and the National Instant 

Check System generally does not encourage or give license to collection, centralization, and retention of information by the Federal 

Government on law-abiding citizens who are not disqualified from 

owning a firearm. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Does the gentleman yield? 

Mr. CANNON. Certainly. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Title II of the Brady law, which established the NICS system, requires the destruction of records as 

soon as practicable after the background check has taken place, 

thus preventing the NICS system from becoming a backdoor gun 

registration law. 

This bill does not change that provision of the Brady law. 

48

Mr. CANNON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would just point out 

that in testimony we have heard in this Committee, records are 

being kept a great deal longer, I think, and I think most Americans 

would think, are practicable. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. If the gentleman will yield? 

Mr. CANNON. Yes. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The Attorney General issued regulations speeding up the destruction of those records, for which he was 

criticized in some quarters. 

Again, this legislation does not speak to the underlying law and 

the regulations relative to the destruction of records. 

Mr. CANNON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Also, there’s another pressing issue of inaccurate records that 

Members should be aware of. These are the records held by the 

ATF on specialty firearms. Yesterday, Representative Jim Gibbons 

and I introduced legislation, the Veterans’ Heritage Firearms Act, 

to remedy part of this problem by allowing a re-registration period 

of these weapons for qualified veterans and their family members. 

Many existing specialty firearms were enemy weapons brought 

back from World War II, Korea, and Vietnam by returning veterans. And these weapons brought back before 1968 have a high 

monetary and historic value, but are subject to confiscation and destruction by the ATF, usually because of errors and inaccuracies in 

the ATF’s own database, as documented by the inspector general. 

I just wanted to take this opportunity to make Members of the 

Committee aware of these two other important issues of our work 

together today to improve recordkeeping and keep guns out of the 

hands of dangerous criminals and those who are otherwise incompetent. 

I thank the Chairman for his indulgence, and I yield back the 

balance of my time. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The question is one the——

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chairman? Mr. Chairman? 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentlewoman from Texas, Ms. 

Jackson Lee. 

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. 

I just want to acknowledge that this legislation will help to aid 

in the prevention of gun use as it relates to those with mental illness, as noted by an act that this church was named after. A disturbed gunman under a restraining order with a history of mental 

health problems, which went unaccounted during a background 

check, fatally shot Reverend Larry Penzes and Eileen Tosner during mass. And I believe this legislation, as it now changes and comports with the law, will help us save lives. 

And I yield back my time. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Jackson Lee follows:]

49


57Lee1A.eps
50


57Lee1B.eps
51


57Lee1C.eps
52


57Lee1D.eps
53

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The question is on the amendment 

in the nature of a substitute. 

Those in favor will say aye. 

Opposed, no. 

The ayes appear to have it. The ayes have it, and the amendment in the nature of a substitute is agreed upon. A reporting 

quorum is present. 

The question now occurs on the motion to report the bill H.R. 

4757 favorably as amended. 

Those in favor will say aye. 

Opposed, no. 

The ayes appear to have it. The ayes have it, and Chair will call 

for a rollcall. 

The question is on favorably reporting the bill. 

Those in favor will, as your names are called, answer aye. 

Those opposed, no. 

And the clerk will call the roll. 

The CLERK. Mr. Hyde? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Gekas? 

Mr. GEKAS. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Gekas, aye. Mr. Coble? 

Mr. COBLE. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Coble, aye. Mr. Smith? 

Mr. SMITH. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Smith, aye. Mr. Gallegly? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Goodlatte? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Chabot? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Barr? 

Mr. BARR. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Barr, aye. Mr. Jenkins? 

Mr. JENKINS. No. 

The CLERK. Mr. Jenkins, no. Mr. Cannon? 

Mr. CANNON. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Cannon, aye. Mr. Graham? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Bachus? Mr. Bachus? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Hostettler? 

Mr. HOSTETTLER. No. 

The CLERK. Mr. Hostettler, no. Mr. Green? 

Mr. GREEN. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Green, aye. Mr. Keller? 

Mr. KELLER. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Keller, aye. Mr. Issa? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Ms. Hart? 

Ms. HART. Aye. 

The CLERK. Ms. Hart, aye. Mr. Flake? 

Mr. FLAKE. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Flake, aye. Mr. Pence? 

[No response.] 

54

The CLERK. Mr. Forbes? 

Mr. FORBES. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Forbes, aye. Mr. Conyers? 

Mr. CONYERS. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Conyers, aye. Mr. Frank? 

Mr. FRANK. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Frank, aye. Mr. Berman? 

Mr. BERMAN. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Berman, aye. Mr. Boucher? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Nadler? 

Mr. NADLER. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Nadler, aye. Mr. Scott? 

Mr. SCOTT. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Scott, aye. Mr. Watt? 

Mr. WATT. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Watt, aye. Ms. Lofgren? 

Ms. LOFGREN. Aye. 

The CLERK. Ms. Lofgren, aye. Ms. Jackson Lee? 

Ms. JACKSON LEE. Aye. 

The CLERK. Ms. Jackson Lee, aye. Ms. Waters? 

Ms. WATERS. Aye. 

The CLERK. Ms. Waters, aye. Mr. Meehan? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Delahunt? 

[No response.] 

The CLERK. Mr. Wexler? 

Mr. WEXLER. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Wexler, aye. Ms. Baldwin? 

Ms. BALDWIN. Aye. 

The CLERK. Ms. Baldwin, aye. Mr. Weiner? 

Mr. WEINER. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Weiner, aye. Mr. Schiff? 

Mr. SCHIFF. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Schiff, aye. Mr. Chairman? 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Chairman, aye. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Additional Members in the chamber 

who wish to cast or change their vote? 

The gentleman from Alabama, Mr. Bachus. 

Mr. BACHUS. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Bachus, aye. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman from California, Mr. 

Issa. 

Mr. ISSA. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Issa, aye. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman from South Carolina, 

Mr. Graham. 

Mr. GRAHAM. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Graham, aye. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman from Virginia, Mr. 

Goodlatte. 

Mr. GOODLATTE. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Goodlatte, aye. 

55

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The gentleman from California, Mr. 

Gallegly. 

Mr. GALLEGLY. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Gallegly, aye. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. Additional Members in the chamber 

who wish to cast or change their votes? 

If not, the clerk will report. 

The gentleman from Massachusetts, Mr. Meehan. 

Mr. MEEHAN. Aye. 

The CLERK. Mr. Meehan, aye. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. The clerk will report. 

The CLERK. Mr. Chairman, there are 30 ayes and two nays. 

Chairman SENSENBRENNER. And the motion to report favorably 

is agreed to. 

Without objection, the bill will be reported favorably to the 

House in the form of a single amendment in the nature of a substitute, incorporating the amendment adopted here today. Without 

objection, the Chairman is authorized to move to go to conference 

pursuant to House rules. Without objection, the staff is directed to 

make any technical and conforming changes. And all Members will 

be given 2 days, as provided by the rules, in which to submit additional, dissenting, supplemental, or minority views.

Æ