I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 920
To expand the powers of the Secretary of the Treasury to regulate the
manufacture, distribution, and sale of firearms and ammunition, and
to expand the jurisdiction of the Secretary to include firearm products
and nonpowder firearms.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 2, 1999
Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To expand the powers of the Secretary of the Treasury
to regulate the manufacture, distribution, and sale of
firearms and ammunition, and to expand the jurisdiction
of the Secretary to include firearm products and nonpow-
der firearms.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Firearms Safety and Consumer Protection Act of 1999’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Purposes.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
TITLE I—REGULATION OF FIREARM PRODUCTS
Sec. 101. Regulatory authority.
Sec. 102. Orders; inspections.
TITLE II—PROHIBITIONS
Sec. 201. Prohibitions.
Sec. 202. Inapplicability to governmental authorities.
TITLE III—ENFORCEMENT
SUBTITLE A—CIVIL ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 301. Civil penalties.
Sec. 302. Injunctive enforcement and seizure.
Sec. 303. Imminently hazardous firearms.
Sec. 304. Private cause of action.
Sec. 305. Private enforcement of this Act.
Sec. 306. Effect on private remedies.
SUBTITLE B—CRIMINAL ENFORCEMENT
Sec. 351. Criminal penalties.
TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Sec. 401. Firearm injury information and research.
Sec. 402. Annual report to Congress.
TITLE V—RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAW
Sec. 501. Subordination to the Arms Export Control Act.
Sec. 502. Effect on State law.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to protect the public against unreasonable
risk of injury and death associated with firearms
and related products;
(2) to develop safety standards for firearms and
related products;
(3) to assist consumers in evaluating the com-
parative safety of firearms and related products;
(4) to promote research and investigation into
the causes and prevention of firearm-related deaths
and injuries; and
(5) to restrict the availability of weapons that
pose an unreasonable risk of death or injury.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
(a) SPECIFIC TERMS.—In this Act:
(1) FIREARMS DEALER.—The term ‘‘firearms
dealer’’ means—
(A) any person engaged in the business (as
defined in section 921(a)(21)(C) of title 18,
United States Code) of dealing in firearms at
wholesale or retail;
(B) any person engaged in the business (as
defined in section 921(a)(21)(D) of title 18,
United States Code) of repairing firearms or of
making or fitting special barrels, stocks, or trig-
ger mechanisms to firearms; and
(C) any person who is a pawnbroker.
(2) FIREARM PART.—The term ‘‘firearm part’’
means—
(A) any part or component of a firearm as
originally manufactured;
(B) any good manufactured or sold—
(i) for replacement or improvement of
a firearm; or
(ii) as any accessory or addition to the
firearm; and
(C) any good that is not a part or compo-
nent of a firearm and is manufactured, sold, de-
livered, offered, or intended for use exclusively
to safeguard individuals from injury by a fire-
arm.
(3) FIREARM
PRODUCT.—The term ‘‘firearm
product’’ means a firearm, firearm part, nonpowder
firearm, and ammunition.
(4) FIREARM SAFETY REGULATION.—The term
‘‘firearm safety regulation’’ means a regulation pre-
scribed under this Act.
(5) FIREARM
SAFETY
STANDARD.—The term
‘‘firearm safety standard’’ means a standard pro-
mulgated under this Act.
(6) NONPOWDER
FIREARM.—The term ‘‘non-
powder firearm’’ means a device specifically designed
to discharge BBs, pellets, darts, or similar projec-
tiles by the release of stored energy.
(7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of the Treasury or the designee of the
Secretary.
(b) OTHER TERMS.—Each term used in this Act that
is not defined in subsection (a) shall have the meaning
(if any) given that term in section 921(a) of title 18,
United States Code.
TITLE I—REGULATION OF
FIREARM PRODUCTS
SEC. 101. REGULATORY AUTHORITY.
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall prescribe
such regulations governing the design, manufacture, and
performance of, and commerce in, firearm products, con-
sistent with this Act, as are reasonably necessary to reduce
or prevent unreasonable risk of injury resulting from the
use of those products.
(b) MAXIMUM INTERVAL BETWEEN ISSUANCE OF
PROPOSED AND FINAL REGULATION.—Not later than 120
days after the date on which the Secretary issues a pro-
posed regulation under subsection (a) with respect to a
matter, the Secretary shall issue a regulation in final form
with respect to the matter.
(c) PETITIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Any person may petition the
Secretary to—
(A) issue, amend, or repeal a regulation
prescribed under subsection (a) of this section;
or
(B) require the recall, repair, or replace-
ment of a firearm product, or the issuance of
refunds with respect to a firearm product.
(2) DEADLINE FOR ACTION ON PETITION.—Not
later than 120 days after the date on which the Sec-
retary receives a petition referred to in paragraph
(1), the Secretary shall—
(A) grant, in whole or in part, or deny the
petition; and
(B) provide the petitioner with the reasons
for granting or denying the petition.
SEC. 102. ORDERS; INSPECTIONS.
(a) AUTHORITY TO PROHIBIT MANUFACTURE, SALE,
OR TRANSFER OF FIREARM PRODUCTS MADE, IMPORTED,
TRANSFERRED, OR DISTRIBUTED IN VIOLATION OF REG-
ULATION.—The Secretary may issue an order prohibiting
the manufacture, sale, or transfer of a firearm product
which the Secretary finds has been manufactured, or has
been or is intended to be imported, transferred, or distrib-
uted in violation of a regulation prescribed under this Act.
(b) AUTHORITY TO REQUIRE THE RECALL, REPAIR,
OR REPLACEMENT OF, OR THE PROVISION OF REFUNDS
WITH RESPECT TO FIREARM PRODUCTS.—The Secretary
may issue an order requiring the manufacturer of, and
any dealer in, a firearm product which the Secretary de-
termines poses an unreasonable risk of injury to the pub-
lic, is not in compliance with a regulation prescribed under
this Act, or is defective, to—
(1) provide notice of the risks associated with
the product, and of how to avoid or reduce the risks,
to—
(A) the public;
(B) in the case of the manufacturer of the
product, each dealer in the product; and
(C) in the case of a dealer in the product,
the manufacturer of the product and the other
persons known to the dealer as dealers in the
product;
(2) bring the product into conformity with the
regulations prescribed under this Act;
(3) repair the product;
(4) replace the product with a like or equivalent
product which is in compliance with those regula-
tions;
(5) refund the purchase price of the product,
or, if the product is more than 1 year old, a lesser
amount based on the value of the product after rea-
sonable use;
(6) recall the product from the stream of com-
merce; or
(7) submit to the Secretary a satisfactory plan
for implementation of any action required under this
subsection.
(c) AUTHORITY TO PROHIBIT MANUFACTURE, IM-
PORTATION, TRANSFER, DISTRIBUTION, OR EXPORT OF
UNREASONABLY RISKY FIREARM PRODUCTS.—The Sec-
retary may issue an order prohibiting the manufacture,
importation, transfer, distribution, or export of a firearm
product if the Secretary determines that the exercise of
other authority under this Act would not be sufficient to
prevent the product from posing an unreasonable risk of
injury to the public.
(d) INSPECTIONS.—In order to ascertain compliance
with this Act and the regulations and orders issued under
this Act, the Secretary may, at reasonable times—
(1) enter any place in which firearm products
are manufactured, stored, or held, for distribution in
commerce, and inspect those areas where the prod-
ucts are manufactured, stored, or held; and
(2) enter and inspect any conveyance being
used to transport a firearm product.
TITLE II—PROHIBITIONS
SEC. 201. PROHIBITIONS.
(a) FAILURE
OF MANUFACTURER TO TEST
AND
CERTIFY FIREARM PRODUCTS.—It shall be unlawful for
the manufacturer of a firearm product to transfer, distrib-
ute, or export a firearm product unless—
(1) the manufacturer has tested the product in
order to ascertain whether the product is in con-
formity with the regulations prescribed under section
101;
(2) the product is in conformity with those reg-
ulations; and
(3) the manufacturer has included in the pack-
aging of the product, and furnished to each person
to whom the product is distributed, a certificate
stating that the product is in conformity with those
regulations.
(b) FAILURE OF MANUFACTURER TO PROVIDE NO-
TICE OF NEW TYPES OF FIREARM PRODUCTS.—It shall
be unlawful for the manufacturer of a new type of firearm
product to manufacture the product, unless the manufac-
turer has provided the Secretary with—
(1) notice of the intent of the manufacturer to
manufacture the product; and
(2) a description of the product.
(c) FAILURE OF MANUFACTURER OR DEALER TO
LABEL FIREARM PRODUCTS.—It shall be unlawful for a
manufacturer of or dealer in firearms to transfer, distrib-
ute, or export a firearm product unless the product is ac-
companied by a label that contains—
(1) the name and address of the manufacturer
of the product;
(2) the name and address of any importer of
the product;
(3) a specification of the regulations prescribed
under this Act that apply to the product; and
(4) the certificate required by subsection (a)(3)
with respect to the product.
(d) FAILURE TO MAINTAIN OR PERMIT INSPECTION
OF RECORDS.—It shall be unlawful for an importer of,
manufacturer of, or dealer in a firearm product to fail
to—
(1) maintain such records, and supply such in-
formation, as the Secretary may require in order to
ascertain compliance with this Act and the regula-
tions and orders issued under this Act; and
(2) permit the Secretary to inspect and copy
those records at reasonable times.
(e) 
IMPORTATION
AND
EXPORTATION
OF
UNCERTIFIED FIREARM PRODUCTS.—It shall be unlawful
for any person to import into the United States or export
a firearm product that is not accompanied by the certifi-
cate required by subsection (a)(3).