I
105TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1349
To regulate handgun ammunition, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 16, 1997
Mr. KENNEDY of Massachusetts introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To regulate handgun ammunition, 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 ‘‘Ammunition Safety
Act of 1997’’.
SEC. 2. DEALERS OF AMMUNITION.
(a) DEFINITION.—Section 921(a)(11)(A) of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘or ammuni-
tion’’ after ‘‘firearms’’.
(b) LICENSING.—Section 923(a) of title 18, United
States Code, is amended—
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(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by
striking ‘‘or importing or manufacturing ammuni-
tion’’ and inserting ‘‘or importing, manufacturing, or
dealing in ammunition’’; and
(2) in paragraph (3)—
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘or’’
the last place it appears;
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the
period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and
(C) by inserting the following new subpara-
graph:
‘‘(C) in ammunition other than ammunition for
destructive devices, $10 per year.’’.
(c) UNLAWFUL ACTS.—Section 922(a)(1)(A) of title
18, United States Code, is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1)—
(A) in subparagraph (A)—
(i) by inserting ‘‘or ammunition’’ after
‘‘firearms’’; and
(ii) by inserting ‘‘or ammunition’’
after ‘‘firearm’’; and
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘or
licensed manufacturer’’ and inserting ‘‘licensed
manufacturer, or licensed dealer’’;
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(2) in paragraph (2), in the matter preceding
subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or ammunition’’
after ‘‘firearm’’;
(3) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘or ammuni-
tion’’ after ‘‘firearm’’ the first place it appears;
(4) in paragraph (5), by inserting ‘‘or ammuni-
tion’’ after ‘‘firearm’’ the first place it appears; and
(5) in paragraph (9), by inserting ‘‘or ammuni-
tion’’ after ‘‘firearms’’.
(d) PENALTIES.—Section 924 of title 18, United
States Code, is amended—
(1) in paragraph (6)—
(A) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking ‘‘1
year’’ and inserting ‘‘2 years’’; and
(B) in subparagraph (B)—
(i) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘1 year’’
and inserting ‘‘2 years’’; and
(ii) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘10
years’’ and inserting ‘‘20 years’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(o) Except to the extent a greater minimum sen-
tence is otherwise provided, any person at least 18 years
of age who violates section 922(g) shall be subject to—
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‘‘(1) twice the maximum punishment authorized
by this subsection; and
‘‘(2) at least twice any term of supervised re-
lease.’’.
(e) APPLICATION OF BRADY HANDGUN VIOLENCE
PREVENTION ACT TO TRANSFER OF AMMUNITION.—Sec-
tion 922(t) of title 18, United States Code, is amended
by inserting ‘‘or ammunition’’ after ‘‘firearm’’ each place
it appears.
SEC. 3. REGULATION OF ARMOR PIERCING AND NEW TYPES
OF DESTRUCTIVE AMMUNITION.
(a) TESTING OF AMMUNITION.—Section 921(a)(17)
of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at
the end the following new subparagraph:
‘‘(D)(i) Notwithstanding subchapter II of chapter 5
of title 5, United States Code, not later than 1 year after
the date of enactment of this subparagraph, the Secretary
shall—
‘‘(I) establish uniform standards for testing and
rating the destructive capacity of projectiles capable
of being used in handguns;
‘‘(II) utilizing the standards established pursu-
ant to subclause (I), establish performance-based
standards to define the rating of ‘armor piercing
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ammunition’ based on the rating at which the pro-
jectiles pierce armor; and
‘‘(III) at the expense of the ammunition manu-
facturer seeking to sell a particular type of ammuni-
tion, test and rate the destructive capacity of the
ammunition utilizing the testing, rating, and per-
formance-based standards established under sub-
clauses (I) and (II).
‘‘(ii) The term ‘armor piercing ammunition’ shall in-
clude any projectile determined to have a destructive ca-
pacity rating higher than the rating threshold established
under subclause (II), in addition to the composition-based
determination of subparagraph (B).
‘‘(iii) The Congress may exempt specific ammunition
designed for sporting purposes from the definition of
‘armor piercing ammunition’.’’.
(b) PROHIBITION.—Section 922(a) of title 18, United
States Code, is amended—
(1) in paragraph (7)—
(A) by striking ‘‘or import’’ and inserting
‘‘, import, possess, or use’’;
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking
‘‘and’’;
(C) in subparagraph (C), by striking the
period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
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(D) by adding at the end the following new
subparagraph:
‘‘(D) the manufacture, importation, or use
of any projectile that has been proven, by test-
ing performed at the expense of the manufac-
turer of the projectile, to have a lower rating
threshold than armor piercing ammunition.’’;
and
(2) in paragraph (8)—
(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking
‘‘and’’;
(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the
period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
subparagraph:
‘‘(D) the manufacture, importation, or use
of any projectile that has been proven, by test-
ing performed at the expense of the manufac-
turer of the projectile, to have a lower rating
threshold than armor piercing ammunition.’’.
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