I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3285 
To provide for a grant program for handgun licensing programs, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 13, 2019 
Mr. RASKIN (for himself and Mrs. HAYES) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To provide for a grant program for handgun licensing 
programs, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Handgun Purchaser 
Licensing Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds as follows: 
(1) In 2017, 91 percent of firearm homicides in 
the United States in which firearm type was speci-
fied were committed with handguns. 
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(2) Research by top national experts shows that 
handgun purchaser licensing laws are associated 
with significant reductions in firearm-related homi-
cides. Research on the effects of Connecticut’s adop-
tion of a handgun purchaser licensing law in 1995 
was associated with a 40-percent reduction in the 
rate of firearm homicide and a 15-percent reduction 
in firearm suicide rates during the first 10 years the 
law was in place. Published research has shown that 
Missouri’s repeal of its handgun purchaser licensing 
law in 2007 was associated with an increase in fire-
arm homicide rates in the state of 27 percent and 
a 16-percent increase in suicides committed with 
firearms. 
(3) In States which have had effective handgun 
purchaser licensing laws for decades, such as Con-
necticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York, 
the vast majority of guns traced to crimes originated 
in other States, which supports the need for hand-
gun purchaser licensing laws in every State. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act— 
(1) the terms ‘‘Attorney General’’, ‘‘State’’, and 
‘‘handgun’’ have the meanings given those terms in 
section 921(a) of title 18, United States Code; and 
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(2) the term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ has the meaning 
given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Deter-
mination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 
5304). 
SEC. 4. GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED FOR HANDGUN LI-
CENSING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General may award 
grants to States, units of local government, and Indian 
tribes for the development, implementation, and evalua-
tion of handgun purchaser licensing requirements. 
(b) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts ap-
propriated to carry out this Act and not later than 90 
days after such amounts are appropriated, the Attorney 
General shall award grants, on a competitive basis, to eli-
gible applicants whose applications are approved under 
subsection (c) to assist such applicants in implementing 
and improving handgun purchaser licensing programs. 
(c) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant 
under this Act, a State, unit of local government, or In-
dian tribe shall submit to the Attorney General an applica-
tion at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
information as the Attorney General may require, includ-
ing— 
(1) a description of the law that the applicant 
has enacted to require a license for any purchase of 
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a handgun including a description of any other ex-
emptions to such law; and 
(2) a description of how the applicant will use 
the grant to carry out or improve its handgun pur-
chaser licensing program. 
(d) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible for 
grants, an applicant shall have in effect handgun pur-
chaser licensing laws that include the following provisions: 
(1) An individual applying for a handgun li-
cense or permit must be not less than 21 years old 
and be a national or lawful permanent resident of 
the United States. 
(2) Such an individual must apply for the hand-
gun purchaser license or permit at a law enforce-
ment agency in the State in which they reside. 
(3) Such an individual must reapply for the 
handgun purchaser license or permit after a period 
not longer than 5 years. 
(4) Such an individual must submit to a back-
ground investigation, and a criminal history check, 
in connection with their application, as established 
by the State, which background investigation and 
criminal history check ensure, at a minimum, that 
such individual is not prohibited from possessing a 
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firearm under section 922(g) of title 18, United 
States Code. 
(5) Such an individual must submit fingerprints 
and photographs in connection with the application 
for the license or permit. 
(6) Any individual who is prohibited from pos-
sessing a firearm under section 922(g) of title 18, 
United States Code, may not receive a license or 
permit. 
(e) USE OF FUNDS.—A recipient of a grant under 
this Act shall use such grant to improve handgun pur-
chaser licensing programs of that grantee. 
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 
as may be necessary to carry out this Act. 
Æ 
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