I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5013 

To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 

Act to prohibit the confiscation of firearms during certain national emergencies. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 28, 2006 

Mr. JINDAL introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Transportation and Infrastructure 

A BILL 

To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act to prohibit the confiscation of firearms during certain national emergencies. 

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 ‘‘Disaster Recovery Per5 sonal Protection Act of 2006’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The Second Amendment to the Constitution 

9 states, ‘‘A well regulated militia being necessary to 


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1 the security of a free State, the right of the people 

2 to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed,’’ and 

3 Congress has repeatedly recognized this language as 

4 protecting an individual right. 

5 (2) In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, State 

6 and local law enforcement and public safety service 

7 organizations were overwhelmed and could not fulfill 

8 the safety needs of the citizens of the State of Lou9 isiana. 

10 (3) In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the safe11 ty of these citizens, and of their homes and property, 

12 was threatened by instances of criminal activity. 

13 (4) Many of these citizens lawfully kept fire14 arms for the safety of themselves, their loved ones, 

15 their businesses, and their property, as guaranteed 

16 by the Second Amendment, and used their firearms, 

17 individually or in concert with their neighbors, for 

18 protection against crime. 

19 (5) In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, certain 

20 agencies confiscated the firearms of these citizens, in 

21 contravention of the Second Amendment, depriving 

22 these citizens of the right to keep and bear arms and 

23 rendering them helpless against criminal activity. 

24 (6) These confiscations were carried out at gun25 point, by nonconsensual entries into private homes, 


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1 by traffic checkpoints, by stoppage of boats, and 

2 otherwise by force. 

3 (7) The citizens from whom firearms were con4 fiscated were either in their own homes or attempt5 ing to flee the flooding and devastation by means of 

6 motor vehicle or boat, and were accosted, stopped, 

7 and arbitrarily deprived of their private property and 

8 means of protection. 

9 (8) The means by which the confiscations were 

10 carried out, which included intrusion into the home, 

11 temporary detention of persons, and seizures of 

12 property, constituted unreasonable searches and sei13 zures and deprived these citizens of liberty and prop14 erty without due process of law in violation of funda15 mental rights under the Constitution. 

16 (9) Many citizens who took temporary refuge in 

17 emergency housing were prohibited from storing fire18 arms on the premises, and were thus treated as sec19 ond-class citizens who had forfeited their constitu20 tional right to keep and bear arms. 

21 (10) At least one highly-qualified search and 

22 rescue team was prevented from joining in relief ef23 forts because the team included individuals with fire24 arms, although these individuals had been deputized 

25 as Federal law enforcement officers. 


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1 (11) These confiscations and prohibitions, and 

2 the means by which they were carried out, deprived 

3 the citizens of Louisiana not only of their right to 

4 keep and bear arms, but also of their rights to per5 sonal security, personal liberty, and private property, 

6 all in violation of the Constitution and laws of the 

7 United States. 

8 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON CONFISCATION OF FIREARMS 

9 DURING CERTAIN NATIONAL EMERGENCIES. 

10 Title VII of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief 

11 and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5201) is 

12 amended by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘SEC. 706. FIREARMS POLICIES. 

14 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION ON CONFISCATION OF FIRE15 ARMS.—No officer or employee of the United States (in16 cluding any member of the uniformed services), or person 

17 operating pursuant to or under color of Federal law, or 

18 receiving Federal funds, or under control of any Federal 

19 official, or providing services to such an officer, employee, 

20 or other person, while acting in support of relief from a 

21 major disaster or emergency, may— 

22 ‘‘(1) temporarily or permanently seize, or au23 thorize seizure of, any firearm the possession of 

24 which is not prohibited under Federal or State law, 


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1 other than for forfeiture in compliance with Federal 

2 law or as evidence in a criminal investigation; 

3 ‘‘(2) require registration of any firearm for 

4 which registration is not required by Federal or 

5 State law; 

6 ‘‘(3) prohibit possession of any firearm, or pro7 mulgate any rule, regulation, or order prohibiting 

8 possession of any firearm, in any place or by any 

9 person where such possession is not otherwise pro10 hibited by Federal or State law; or 

11 ‘‘(4) prohibit the carrying of firearms by any 

12 person otherwise authorized to carry firearms under 

13 Federal or State law, solely because such person is 

14 operating under the direction, control, or supervision 

15 of a Federal agency in support of relief from a 

16 major disaster or emergency. 

17 ‘‘(b) PRIVATE RIGHTS OF ACTION.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any individual aggrieved 

19 by a violation of this section may seek relief in an 

20 action at law, suit in equity, or other proper pro21 ceeding for redress against any person who subjects 

22 such individual, or causes such individual to be sub23 jected, to the deprivation of any of the rights, privi24 leges, or immunities secured by this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) REMEDIES.—In addition to any existing 

2 remedy in law or equity, under any law, an indi3 vidual aggrieved by the seizure or confiscation of a 

4 firearm in violation of this section may bring an ac5 tion for return of such firearm in the United States 

6 district court in the district in which that individual 

7 resides or in which such firearm may be found. 

8 ‘‘(3) ATTORNEY FEES.—In any action or pro9 ceeding to enforce this section, the court shall award 

10 the prevailing party, other than the United States, 

11 a reasonable attorney’s fee as part of the costs.’’. 

Æ 


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