I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4255 

To prevent the illegal sale of firearms, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 9, 2019 

Mr. QUIGLEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To prevent the illegal sale of firearms, 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 ‘‘Trafficking Reduction 

5 And Criminal Enforcement (TRACE) Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REGULATORY REQUIREMENT TO MARK FIREARMS 

7 WITH SECOND, HIDDEN SERIAL NUMBER. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Within 12 months after the date 

9 of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall 

10 promulgate final regulations that require each firearm 

11 manufactured in the United States on or after the effecVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Sep 10, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4255.IH H4255

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1 tive date of the regulation, to be marked with a serial 

2 number that is located inside the receiver of the firearm 

3 or that is visible only in infrared light, in addition to the 

4 serial number with which the firearm is otherwise required 

5 by law to be marked. 

6 (b) DEFINITION OF RECEIVER.—Section 921(a) of 

7 title 18, United States Code, is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (3)— 

9 (A) by inserting ‘‘, including an unfinished 

10 frame or receiver’’ after ‘‘such weapon’’; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘or (D) any destructive de12 vice’’ and inserting ‘‘; (D) any destructive de13 vice; or (E) any combination of parts designed 

14 or intended for use in converting any device 

15 into a firearm and from which a firearm may 

16 be readily assembled’’; 

17 (2) in paragraph (10)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘and the’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘the’’; and 

20 (B) by inserting ‘‘; and the term ‘manufac21 turing firearms’ shall include assembling a 

22 functional firearm from a frame or receiver or 

23 molding, machining, or 3D printing a frame or 

24 receiver, and shall not include making or fitting 


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1 special barrels, stocks, or trigger mechanisms to 

2 firearms’’ before the period; and 

3 (3) by inserting after paragraph (29) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(30) The term ‘frame or receiver’— 

6 ‘‘(A) means the part of a firearm that can 

7 provide the action or housing for the hammer, 

8 bolt, or breechblock and firing mechanism; 

9 ‘‘(B) includes a frame or lower receiver 

10 blank, casting, or machined body that requires 

11 further machining or molding to be used as 

12 part of a functional firearm, and which is de13 signed and intended to be used in the assembly 

14 of a functional firearm; and 

15 ‘‘(C) does not include a piece of material 

16 that has had— 

17 ‘‘(i) its size or external shape altered 

18 solely to facilitate transportation or stor19 age; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) solely its chemical composition 

21 altered.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT TO PRESERVE INSTANT CRIMINAL 

2 BACKGROUND CHECK RECORDS FOR 180 

3 DAYS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 922(t)(2)(C) of title 18, 

5 United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘after the 

6 180-day period that begins with the date the system com7 plies with subparagraphs (A) and (B),’’ before ‘‘destroy’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 511 of divi9 sion B of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appro10 priations Act, 2012 (34 U.S.C. 40901 note; Public Law 

11 112–55; 125 Stat. 632) is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘for—’’ and all that follows 

13 through ‘‘(1)’’; and 

14 (2) by striking the semicolon and all that fol15 lows and inserting a period. 

16 (c) REGULATIONS.—Within 180 days after the date 

17 of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall 

18 prescribe regulations to implement the amendments made 

19 by this section. 

20 SEC. 4. REQUIREMENT THAT LICENSED FIREARMS DEAL21 ERS CONDUCT PHYSICAL CHECK OF THEIR 

22 FIREARMS BUSINESS INVENTORY. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 923(g) of title 18, United 

24 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(8) Each licensee shall conduct a physical check of 

2 the firearms inventory of the business of the licensee li3 censed under this chapter, in accordance with regulations 

4 which shall be prescribed by the Attorney General.’’. 

5 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The matter under 

6 the heading ‘‘BUREAU OF ALCOHOL, TOBACCO, FIREARMS

7 AND EXPLOSIVES—SALARIES AND EXPENSES’’ in title II 

8 of division B of the Consolidated and Further Continuing 

9 Appropriations Act, 2013 (18 U.S.C. 923 note; Public 

10 Law 113–6; 127 Stat. 247–248) is amended by striking 

11 the 5th proviso. 

12 (c) REGULATIONS.—Within 180 days after the date 

13 of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall 

14 prescribe regulations to implement section 923(g)(8) of 

15 title 18, United States Code. 

16 SEC. 5. ELIMINATION OF LIMITATIONS ON USE OF GUN 

17 TRACE INFORMATION. 

18 (a) CONSOLIDATED AND FURTHER CONTINUING AP19 PROPRIATIONS ACT, 2012.—The matter under the head20 ing ‘‘BUREAU OF ALCOHOL, TOBACCO, FIREARMS AND

21 EXPLOSIVES—SALARIES AND EXPENSES’’ in title II of di22 vision B of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Ap23 propriations Act, 2012 (18 U.S.C. 923 note; Public Law 

24 112–55; 125 Stat. 609–610) is amended by striking the 

25 1st and 6th provisos. 


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1 (b) CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2010.— 

2 The 6th proviso under the heading ‘‘BUREAU OF ALCO3 HOL, TOBACCO, FIREARMS AND EXPLOSIVES—SALARIES

4 AND EXPENSES’’ in title II of division B of the Consoli5 dated Appropriations Act, 2010 (18 U.S.C. 923 note; Pub6 lic Law 111–117; 123 Stat. 3128–3129) is amended by 

7 striking ‘‘beginning in fiscal year 2010 and thereafter’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘in fiscal year 2010’’. 

9 (c) OMNIBUS APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2009.—The 6th 

10 proviso under the heading ‘‘BUREAU OF ALCOHOL, TO11 BACCO, FIREARMS AND EXPLOSIVES—SALARIES AND EX12 PENSES’’ in title II of division B of the Omnibus Appro13 priations Act, 2009 (18 U.S.C. 923 note; Public Law 111– 

14 8; 123 Stat. 574–576) is amended by striking ‘‘beginning 

15 in fiscal year 2009 and thereafter’’ and inserting ‘‘in fiscal 

16 year 2009’’. 

17 (d) CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008.— 

18 The 6th proviso under the heading ‘‘BUREAU OF ALCO19 HOL, TOBACCO, FIREARMS AND EXPLOSIVES—SALARIES

20 AND EXPENSES’’ in title II of division B of the Consoli21 dated Appropriations Act, 2008 (18 U.S.C. 923 note; Pub22 lic Law 110–161; 121 Stat. 1903–1904) is amended by 

23 striking ‘‘beginning in fiscal year 2008 and thereafter’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘in fiscal year 2008’’. 


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1 (e) SCIENCE, STATE, JUSTICE, COMMERCE, AND RE2 LATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2006.—The 6th 

3 proviso under the heading ‘‘BUREAU OF ALCOHOL, TO4 BACCO, FIREARMS AND EXPLOSIVES—SALARIES AND EX5 PENSES’’ in title I of the Science, State, Justice, Com6 merce, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 

7 (18 U.S.C. 923 note; Public Law 109–108; 119 Stat. 

8 2295–2296) is amended by striking ‘‘with respect to any 

9 fiscal year’’. 

10 (f) CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2005.— 

11 The 6th proviso under the heading ‘‘BUREAU OF ALCO12 HOL, TOBACCO, FIREARMS AND EXPLOSIVES—SALARIES

13 AND EXPENSES’’ in title I of division B of the Science, 

14 State, Justice, Commerce, and Related Agencies Appro15 priations Act, 2005 (18 U.S.C. 923 note; Public Law 108– 

16 447; 118 Stat. 2859) is amended by striking ‘‘with respect 

17 to any fiscal year’’. 

18 (g) CONSOLIDATED APPROPRIATIONS RESOLUTION, 

19 2003.—Section 644 of division J of the Consolidated Ap20 propriations Resolution, 2003 (5 U.S.C. 552 note; Public 

21 Law 108–7; 117 Stat. 473–474) is amended by striking 

22 ‘‘or any other Act with respect to any fiscal year’’. 

Æ 


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