I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5544 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the transfer of a firearm 

to a person whose name is in the Terrorist Screening Database, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 21, 2016 

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

on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit the transfer of a firearm to a person whose name is in the 

Terrorist Screening Database, 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 ‘‘Terrorist Screening 

5 Database Improvement Act’’. 

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1 SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON TRANSFER OF FIREARM TO PER2 SON WHOSE NAME IS IN THE TERRORIST 

3 SCREENING DATABASE; PROCEDURAL 

4 RULES. 

5 (a) PROHIBITION.—The first sentence of section 

6 922(d) of title 18, United States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 

8 (8); 

9 (2) by striking the period at the end of para10 graph (9) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(10) is an individual whose name appears in 

13 the Terrorist Screening Database maintained by the 

14 Federal Bureau of Investigation.’’. 

15 (b) PROCEDURAL RULES.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 44 of title 18, 

17 United States Code, is amended by inserting after 

18 section 925A the following: 

19 ‘‘§ 925B. Procedures applicable with respect to fire20 arm transfers to suspected terrorists 

21 ‘‘(a) If a licensee contacts the national instant crimi22 nal background check system established under section 

23 103 of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act to re24 quest a unique identification number for the transfer of 

25 a firearm to a person under section 922(t) of this title, 

26 and— 

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1 ‘‘(1) the information available to the system in2 dicates that the transfer of a firearm to the person 

3 would violate section 922(d)(10) of this title, the 

4 system shall immediately notify the Attorney Gen5 eral of the information; or 

6 ‘‘(2) the person has been or is under a ter7 rorism investigation conducted by the Department of 

8 Justice or any other department or agency of the 

9 Federal Government, the system shall notify the ap10 propriate division of the Federal Bureau of Inves11 tigation of the request and pending firearm transfer. 

12 ‘‘(b) Within 10 days after the Attorney General re13 ceives a notice pursuant to subsection (a)(1) with respect 

14 to a person, the Attorney General shall notify the person 

15 that the name of the person appears in the Terrorist 

16 Screening Database maintained by the Federal Bureau of 

17 Investigation. 

18 ‘‘(c)(1) Within 30 days after a person receives a no19 tice pursuant to subsection (b), the person may bring an 

20 action against the United States in the United States dis21 trict court for the judicial district in which the person re22 sides, to require the United States to demonstrate why 

23 the name of the person appears in the Terrorist Screening 

24 Database maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investiga25 tion. 

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1 ‘‘(2) In an action brought under this subsection: 

2 ‘‘(A) If the United States fails to demonstrate 

3 by a preponderance of the evidence that the plaintiff 

4 may intend to cause harm to others or engage in 

5 terrorism or activities in support of terrorism, the 

6 court shall order the Federal Bureau of Investiga7 tion to remove the name of the plaintiff from the 

8 Terrorist Screening Database maintained by the 

9 Federal Bureau of Investigation, and may provide 

10 such other relief to the plaintiff as the court deems 

11 appropriate. 

12 ‘‘(B) The court shall find that the United 

13 States has failed to make the demonstration de14 scribed in subparagraph (A) with respect to a plain15 tiff if the United States has failed to— 

16 ‘‘(i) comply with subsection (b) with re17 spect to the plaintiff; or 

18 ‘‘(ii) respond in a timely manner in the ac19 tion. 

20 ‘‘(3) The court shall seal all proceedings in an action 

21 brought under this subsection.’’. 

22 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec23 tions for such chapter is amended by inserting after 

24 the item relating to section 925A the following: 

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‘‘925B. Procedures applicable with respect to firearm transfers to suspected terrorists.’’. 

Æ 

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