I

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 787

To prohibit the manufacture, importation, exportation, sale, purchase, transfer, receipt, possession, or transportation of handguns and handgun

ammunition, with certain exceptions.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 13, 1997

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

on the Judiciary

A BILL

To prohibit the manufacture, importation, exportation, sale,

purchase, transfer, receipt, possession, or transportation

of handguns and handgun ammunition, with certain exceptions.

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 ‘‘Public Health and

5 Safety Act of 1997’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS.

7 The Congress finds and declares that—
2

HR 787 IH

1 (1) the number of privately held handguns has

2 more than doubled—from 33,000,000 in 1973 to

3 more than 75,000,000 in 1995—in the past two dec4 ades alone, and the number of handguns in circula5 tion continues to increase by 2,500,000 handguns

6 each year;

7 (2) handguns play a major role, disproportion8 ate to their number in comparison with rifles and

9 shotguns, in violent crime, intentional and accidental

10 death, and intentional and accidental injury;

11 (3) while the number of homicides committed

12 with long guns has remained relatively stable, the

13 number of handgun homicides has set new records

14 every year since 1987, matching pace with the sky15 rocketing national homicide rate;

16 (4) the number of handgun-related incidents in

17 elementary and secondary schools has increased

18 sharply, with significant numbers of schoolchildren

19 in rural and urban areas reporting easy access to

20 and frequent carrying to school of handguns; and

21 the presence of handguns in school not only pro22 vokes worry among parents and children but also

23 causes much needed school funds to be diverted for

24 purchase of security equipment;
3

HR 787 IH

1 (5) handgun violence places considerable strain

2 on the national health care system and the economy,

3 at a cost of $20,400,000,000 annually as a result of

4 direct medical expenditures, lost productivity from

5 injury-related illness and disability, and lost produc6 tivity from premature death;

7 (6) handguns kept in the home are of less value

8 than is commonly thought in defending against in9 truders, and they are far more likely to increase sig10 nificantly the danger of a handgun fatality or injury

11 to the inhabitants (including children) than to en12 hance their personal safety;

13 (7) violent crime and injury committed with

14 handguns constitute a burden upon and interfere

15 with interstate and foreign commerce, and threaten

16 the domestic tranquility of the Nation; and

17 (8) current Federal firearms policy is wholly in18 adequate to counteract the social, economic, and fi19 nancial costs exacted by handguns to our society.

20 SEC. 3. AMENDMENT OF TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.

21 Chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, is amend22 ed—

23 (1) by—

24 (A) redesignating the text of the chapter

25 as subchapter A;
4

HR 787 IH

1 (B) inserting after the chapter heading the

2 following:

‘‘Subchapter

‘‘A. Firearms In General ........................................................................... 921

‘‘B. Handguns ........................................................................................... 941

‘‘SUBCHAPTER A—FIREARMS IN GENERAL’’;

3 and

4 (C) striking ‘‘this chapter’’ each place it

5 appears and inserting ‘‘this subchapter’’; and

6 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub7 chapter:

‘‘SUBCHAPTER B—HANDGUNS

‘‘Sec.

‘‘941. Definitions.

‘‘942. Unlawful acts.

‘‘943. Licensing of handgun clubs.

‘‘944. Registration of security guard services.

‘‘945. Recordkeeping and reports; transfers to licensed handgun clubs.

‘‘946. Voluntary delivery to law enforcement agency; reimbursement.

‘‘947. Penalties.

‘‘948. Regulations.

‘‘949. Relation to other law.

‘‘950. Severability.

8 ‘‘§ 941. Definitions

9 ‘‘(a) TERMS DEFINED IN SECTION 921.—Unless oth10 erwise defined in subsection (b), a term used in this sub11 chapter that is defined in section 921 has the meaning

12 stated in that section.

13 ‘‘(b) ADDITIONAL TERMS.—As used in this sub14 chapter:

15 ‘‘ ‘Handgun’ means any firearm, including a

16 pistol or revolver, that is designed to be fired by the
5

HR 787 IH

1 use of a single hand, and any combination of parts

2 from which such a firearm can be assembled.

3 ‘‘ ‘Handgun ammunition’ means ammunition

4 that is designed for use primarily in a handgun.

5 ‘‘ ‘Handgun club’ means a club organized for

6 bona fide target shooting with handguns.

7 ‘‘ ‘Licensed handgun club’ means a handgun

8 club that is licensed under section 943.

9 ‘‘ ‘Registered security guard service’ means a

10 security guard service that is registered under sec11 tion 944.

12 ‘‘ ‘Security guard service’ means an entity that

13 engages in the business of providing security guard

14 services to the public.

15 ‘‘§ 942. Unlawful acts

16 ‘‘(a) OFFENSE.—Except as provided in subsections

17 (b) and (c), it is unlawful for a person to manufacture,

18 import, export, sell, buy, transfer, receive, own, possess,

19 transport, or use a handgun or handgun ammunition.

20 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsection (a) does not apply

21 to—

22 ‘‘(1) the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps,

23 Coast Guard, and National Guard;
6

HR 787 IH

1 ‘‘(2) Federal, State, or local government agen2 cies charged with law enforcement duties that re3 quire its officers to possess handguns;

4 ‘‘(3) registered security guard services, and em5 ployees of such services who are performing duties

6 as security guards;

7 ‘‘(4) licensed handgun clubs; or

8 ‘‘(5) members of a licensed handgun club who

9 are participating in otherwise lawful activities of the

10 club.

11 ‘‘(c) APPROVED TRANSACTIONS.—Pursuant to regu12 lations issued by the Secretary, the Secretary may approve

13 the manufacture, importation, sale, purchase, transfer, re14 ceipt, ownership, possession, transportation, and use of a

15 handgun or handgun ammunition by licensed manufactur16 ers, licensed importers, and licensed dealers as necessary

17 to meet the lawful requirements of the persons and entities

18 described in subsection (b).

19 ‘‘§ 943. Licensing of handgun clubs

20 ‘‘(a) HANDGUN CLUBS.—Pursuant to regulations is21 sued by the Secretary, the Secretary may issue a license

22 to a handgun club if—

23 ‘‘(1) no member of the handgun club is a per24 son whose membership and participation in the club

25 is in violation of State or local law;
7

HR 787 IH

1 ‘‘(2) no member of the handgun club is prohib2 ited from transporting, shipping, or receiving fire3 arms or ammunition in interstate or foreign com4 merce under section 922 (g) or (h);

5 ‘‘(3) no member of the handgun club has will6 fully violated this chapter or any regulations issued

7 under this chapter;

8 ‘‘(4) the handgun club has not willfully failed to

9 disclose any material information required, and has

10 not made any false statement as to any material fact

11 in connection with its application;

12 ‘‘(5) the handgun club has been founded and is

13 operated for bona fide target shooting;

14 ‘‘(6) the handgun club—

15 ‘‘(A) has a single, established premises

16 from which it operates;

17 ‘‘(B) has procedures for supervising the

18 use of handguns by its members at all times;

19 ‘‘(C)(i) has procedures and has facilities on

20 its premises for keeping the handguns in a se21 cure place, under the control of a designated of22 ficer of the club, at all times when the hand23 guns are not being used by its members; and

24 ‘‘(ii) has made arrangements for the stor25 age of the members’ handguns in a facility of
8

HR 787 IH

1 the local police department or other law en2 forcement agency, at all times when the hand3 guns are not being used by its members; and

4 ‘‘(D) meets all operational, safety, security,

5 training, and other requirements that the Sec6 retary may prescribe by regulation.

7 ‘‘(b) REVOCATION.—The Secretary shall revoke the

8 license of a licensed handgun club that does not continue

9 to meet the requirements of subsection (a).

10 ‘‘(c) LICENSE FEE.—A licensed handgun club shall

11 pay to the Secretary an annual license fee of $25.

12 ‘‘§ 944. Registration of security guard services

13 ‘‘(a) SECURITY GUARD SERVICES.—Under regula14 tions issued by the Secretary, the Secretary may approve

15 the registration of a security guard service if—

16 ‘‘(1)(A) the security guard service has proce17 dures and has facilities on its premises for keeping

18 its handguns in a secure place, under the control of

19 a designated officer of the security guard service; or

20 ‘‘(B) has made arrangements for the storage of

21 its handguns in a facility of the local police depart22 ment or other law enforcement agency, at all times

23 when such handguns are not in use for legitimate

24 business purposes;
9

HR 787 IH

1 ‘‘(2) the security guard service has obtained all

2 necessary State and local licenses and meets all

3 State and local requirements to engage in the busi4 ness of providing security guard service; and

5 ‘‘(3) the security guard service meets all oper6 ational, safety, security, training, and other require7 ments that the Secretary may prescribe by regula8 tion.

9 ‘‘(b) REVOCATION.—The Secretary shall revoke the

10 registration of a registered security guard service that

11 does not continue to meet the requirements of subsection

12 (a).

13 ‘‘(c) REGISTRATION FEE.—A registered security

14 guard service shall pay to the Secretary an annual reg15 istration fee of $50.

16 ‘‘§ 945. Recordkeeping and reports; transfers to li17 censed handgun clubs

18 ‘‘(a) RECORDKEEPING.—

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A licensed manufacturer,

20 licensed importer, licensed dealer, licensed handgun

21 club, or registered security guard service that sells

22 or otherwise transfers a handgun or handgun ammu23 nition shall—
10

HR 787 IH

1 ‘‘(A) maintain records of such sales, trans2 fers, receipts, and other dispositions of hand3 guns and handgun ammunition, in such form as

4 the Secretary may by regulation provide; and

5 ‘‘(B) permit the Secretary to enter its

6 premises at reasonable times for the purpose of

7 inspecting such records.

8 ‘‘(2) MEMBERS OF LICENSED HANDGUN

9 CLUBS.—A member of a licensed handgun club who

10 sells or otherwise transfers a handgun or handgun

11 ammunition shall maintain records of such sales,

12 transfers, receipts, and other dispositions of hand13 guns and handgun ammunition, in such form as the

14 Secretary may by regulation provide.

15 ‘‘(b) REPORTS OF LOSS OR THEFT.—(1) A licensed

16 handgun club or registered security guard service shall re17 port to the Secretary a loss or theft of any handgun in

18 its possession or the possession of one of its members or

19 employees not later than thirty days after the loss or theft

20 is discovered.

21 ‘‘(2) A report made under paragraph (1) shall include

22 such information as the Secretary by regulation shall pre23 scribe, including the date and place of theft or loss.

24 ‘‘(c) TRANSFERS TO HANDGUN CLUBS.—A person

25 that sells or otherwise transfers a handgun to a licensed
11

HR 787 IH

1 handgun club or member of a licensed handgun club shall

2 transport or otherwise deliver the handgun directly to the

3 premises of the licensed handgun club where the handgun

4 will be kept.

5 ‘‘§ 946. Voluntary delivery to law enforcement agen6 cy; reimbursement

7 ‘‘(a) DELIVERY.—A person may at any time volun8 tarily deliver to any Federal, State, or local law enforce9 ment agency designated by the Secretary a handgun

10 owned or possessed by the person.

11 ‘‘(b) DISPOSITION.—The Secretary shall arrange

12 with each agency designated to receive handguns for the

13 transfer, destruction, or other disposition of handguns de14 livered under subsection (a).

15 ‘‘(c) REIMBURSEMENT.—The Secretary shall pay to

16 a person who delivers a handgun under subsection (a) on

17 or prior to the date that is one hundred eighty days after

18 the date of enactment of this subchapter an amount equal

19 to the greater of—

20 ‘‘(1) $25; or

21 ‘‘(2) the fair market value of the handgun as

22 determined by the Secretary.

23 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

24 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary such
12

HR 787 IH

1 sums as are necessary to make such payments under sub2 section (c).

3 § 947. Penalties

4 ‘‘(a) VIOLATION OF SECTION 942.—(1) Except as

5 provided in paragraph (2), a person who violates section

6 942 shall be fined not more than $5,000, imprisoned not

7 more than five years, or both.

8 ‘‘(2) A person who voluntarily delivers a handgun

9 under section 946(a) after the date that is one hundred

10 eighty days after the date of enactment of this subchapter

11 shall not be subject to criminal prosecution for possession

12 of the handgun under any Federal, State, or local law,

13 but shall pay to the Secretary a civil penalty in an amount

14 determined by the Secretary, not to exceed $500.

15 ‘‘(b) FAILURE TO REPORT LOSS OR THEFT.—A li16 censed handgun club or registered security guard service

17 that fails to report a loss or theft of a handgun as required

18 by section 945(b)—

19 ‘‘(1) in the case of a negligent failure to report

20 or a negligent failure to discover the loss or theft,

21 shall pay to the Secretary a civil penalty in an

22 amount determined by the Secretary, not to exceed

23 $1,000; and

24 ‘‘(2) in the case of an intentional failure to re25 port, shall be fined not more than $5,000, its officer
13

HR 787 IH

1 designated under section 943(a)(6)(C)(i) or

2 944(a)(1)(A) imprisoned not more than five years,

3 or both.

4 ‘‘(c) FAILURE TO DELIVER TO PREMISES OF LI5 CENSED HANDGUN CLUB.—A person who sells or other6 wise transfers a handgun to a licensed handgun club or

7 member of a licensed handgun club and causes the hand8 gun to be shipped or otherwise delivered by any means

9 or to any place other than directly to the premises of the

10 licensed handgun club where the handgun will be kept, in

11 violation of section 945(c)—

12 ‘‘(1) in the case of a negligent delivery to an

13 unauthorized place, shall pay to the Secretary a civil

14 penalty in an amount determined by the Secretary,

15 not to exceed $1,000; and

16 ‘‘(2) in the case of an intentional delivery to an

17 unauthorized place, shall be fined not more than

18 $5,000, imprisoned not more than five years, or

19 both.

20 ‘‘(d) FALSE STATEMENT OR REPRESENTATION.—(1)

21 A person who—

22 ‘‘(A) makes a false statement or representation

23 with respect to information required by this sub24 chapter to be kept in the records of an importer,

25 manufacturer, dealer, or handgun club licensed
14

HR 787 IH

1 under this subchapter or security guard service reg2 istered under this subchapter; or

3 ‘‘(B) makes a false statement or representation

4 in applying for a handgun club license or security

5 guard service registration under this subchapter,

6 shall be subject to penalty under paragraph (2).

7 ‘‘(2)(A) In the case of a negligent making of a false

8 statement or representation described in paragraph (1),

9 the person shall pay to the Secretary a civil penalty in

10 an amount determined by the Secretary, not to exceed

11 $1,000; and

12 ‘‘(B) in the case of an intentional making of a false

13 statement or representation described in paragraph (1),

14 the person shall be fined not more than $5,000, impris15 oned not more than five years, or both.

16 ‘‘(e) FAILURE TO KEEP OR PERMIT INSPECTION OF

17 RECORDS.—A person who fails to keep or permit inspec18 tion of records in violation of section 945(a)—

19 ‘‘(1) in the case of a negligent failure to main20 tain records, shall pay to the Secretary a civil pen21 alty in an amount determined by the Secretary, not

22 to exceed $1,000; and

23 ‘‘(2) in the case of an intentional failure to

24 maintain records or any failure to permit inspection

25 of records, shall be fined not more than $5,000, and
15

HR 787 IH

1 its chief executive officer or other person responsible

2 for the failure shall be imprisoned not more than

3 five years, or both.

4 ‘‘(f) FORFEITURE.—Any handgun or handgun am5 munition involved or used in, or intended to be used in,

6 a violation of this subchapter or any regulation issued

7 under this subchapter, or any violation of any other crimi8 nal law of the United States, shall be subject to seizure

9 and forfeiture, and all provisions of the Internal Revenue

10 Code of 1986 relating to the seizure, forfeiture, and dis11 position of firearms shall, so far as applicable, extend to

12 seizures and forfeitures under this subchapter.

13 ‘‘§ 948. Regulations

14 ‘‘The Secretary may prescribe such regulations as the

15 Secretary deems necessary to carry out this subchapter.

16 ‘‘§ 949. Relation to other law

17 ‘‘The regulation of handguns under this subchapter

18 is in addition to the regulation of handguns under sub19 chapter A and any other Federal, State, or local law.

20 ‘‘§ 950. Severability

21 ‘‘If any provision of this subchapter or the application

22 thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the

23 remainder of the subchapter and the application of that

24 provision to other persons not similarly situated or to

25 other circumstances shall not be affected thereby.’’.
16

HR 787 IH

1 SEC. 4. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

2 Nothing in this Act shall be construed as modifying

3 or affecting any provision of—

4 (1) the National Firearms Act (chapter 53 of

5 the Internal Revenue Code of 1956);

6 (2) section 414 of the Mutual Security Act of

7 1954 (22 U.S.C. 1934), relating to munitions con8 trol; or

9 (3) section 1715 of title 18, United States

10 Code, relating to nonmailable firearms.

11 SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection

13 (b), this Act and the amendments made by this Act shall

14 take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.

15 (b) DELAYED EFFECTIVE DATE.—Sections 942 and

16 945 of title 18, United States Code, as added by section

17 3 of this Act, shall take effect on the date that is one

18 hundred and eighty days after the date of enactment of

19 this Act.

Æ