I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4238 
To provide grants to States to encourage the implementation and maintenance 
of firearms licensing requirements, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 29, 2021 
Ms. PRESSLEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To provide grants to States to encourage the implementation 
and maintenance of firearms licensing requirements, 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 ‘‘Making America Safe 
and Secure Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘MASS Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FIREARMS LICENSING. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title I of the Omnibus Crime 
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10101 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘PART PP—FIREARMS LICENSING 
‘‘SEC. 3061. DEFINITIONS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In this part— 
‘‘(1) the term ‘covered license’ means a— 
‘‘(A) firearms license; or 
‘‘(B) firearms dealer license; 
‘‘(2) the term ‘domestic violence protection 
order’ means a protection order, as defined in sec-
tion 2266 of title 18, United States Code; 
‘‘(3) the term ‘extreme risk protection order’— 
‘‘(A) means a written order, issued by a 
State court or signed by a magistrate that, for 
a period not to exceed a time frame established 
by the State— 
‘‘(i) prohibits the individual named in 
the order from having under the custody or 
control of the individual, purchasing, pos-
sessing, or receiving a firearm or ammuni-
tion; and 
‘‘(ii) requires that any firearm or am-
munition under the custody or control of 
the individual be removed; and 
‘‘(B) does not include a domestic violence 
protection order; 
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‘‘(4) the term ‘prohibited individual’ means an 
individual who is categorically ineligible to receive a 
covered license; 
‘‘(5) the term ‘suitable’ means that an indi-
vidual does not create a risk to public safety; and 
‘‘(6) the term ‘thorough background check’ 
means a Federal and State background check, which 
may include a fingerprint-based background check. 
‘‘(b) PROHIBITED INDIVIDUALS.—For purposes of 
this part, a State— 
‘‘(1) shall establish standards for categorizing 
an individual as a prohibited individual for purposes 
of receiving a covered license; and 
‘‘(2) in establishing standards with respect to a 
covered license under paragraph (1), shall take into 
consideration whether limitations may be warranted 
based on— 
‘‘(A) criminal history; 
‘‘(B) whether an individual has been— 
‘‘(i) deemed a danger to himself or 
herself or other individuals by a court or 
authorized administrative body; or 
‘‘(ii) committed to a hospital or insti-
tution as a danger to himself or herself or 
other individuals; 
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‘‘(C) age; 
‘‘(D) legal residency; 
‘‘(E) military dishonorable discharges; 
‘‘(F) whether an individual— 
‘‘(i) is subject to a permanent or tem-
porary protection order; or 
‘‘(ii) has been convicted of a mis-
demeanor crime of domestic violence (as 
defined in section 921 of title 18, United 
States Code); 
‘‘(G) outstanding arrest warrants; 
‘‘(H) status as a fugitive; 
‘‘(I) renunciation of United States citizen-
ship; and 
‘‘(J) other factors relevant to the suit-
ability of a license holder. 
‘‘SEC. 3062. GRANTS AND CONDITIONS. 
‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Assistant Attorney 
General may make grants to States to implement or main-
tain firearms and firearms dealer licensing requirements. 
‘‘(b) DURATION OF GRANTS.—A grant under sub-
section (a) shall be for a period of 3 fiscal years. 
‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS FOR FIREARMS AND FIREARMS 
DEALER LICENSING.— 
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‘‘(1) ACTIVITIES.—Amounts received under a 
grant under subsection (a) shall be used for the im-
plementation or maintenance of firearms and fire-
arms dealer licensing requirements, which shall in-
corporate and implement the elements described in 
paragraph (2) of this subsection. 
‘‘(2) ELEMENTS.—The elements described in 
this paragraph are those providing that— 
‘‘(A) an individual shall have a firearms li-
cense— 
‘‘(i) at the time of the purchase, rent-
al, or lease of a firearm or purchase of am-
munition; and 
‘‘(ii) during the entire period of own-
ership or possession of a firearm or ammu-
nition; 
‘‘(B)(i) an individual who (including the 
owner or operator of a business that) sells, 
rents, or leases a minimum number of firearms, 
or sells ammunition, during a calendar year 
shall obtain a firearms dealer license; and 
‘‘(ii) the State shall establish the minimum 
number of firearms for purposes of clause (i), 
which may not be higher than 10 per calendar 
year; 
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‘‘(C) the chief of police or the board or of-
ficer having control of the police department of 
a local government, or a designee within the 
same department, shall function as the licensing 
authority; 
‘‘(D) for an application for issuance or re-
newal of a firearms license, the licensing au-
thority shall— 
‘‘(i) conduct a thorough background 
check, which may include— 
‘‘(I) conducting an interview with 
the applicant; 
‘‘(II) requiring the submission of 
letters of reference stating that the 
applicant is of sound mind and char-
acter; and 
‘‘(III) any other requirements the 
State determines relevant; and 
‘‘(ii) make a determination of suit-
ability; 
‘‘(E) a first-time firearms license applicant 
shall complete safety training; 
‘‘(F) for an application for issuance or re-
newal of a firearms dealer license, the licensing 
authority shall conduct an investigation into the 
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criminal history of the applicant, which may in-
clude— 
‘‘(i) an interview with the applicant; 
‘‘(ii) a thorough background check; 
and 
‘‘(iii) any other requirements the 
State determines relevant; 
‘‘(G) the State shall establish appropriate 
application processes for covered licenses con-
sistent with Federal, State, and local law; 
‘‘(H) the State shall establish standards 
and processes by which licensing authorities can 
revoke, suspend, or deny the issuance or re-
newal of a covered license; 
‘‘(I) the State shall ensure that a revoca-
tion, suspension, or denial cannot be based on 
race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, sexual ori-
entation, or gender identity; 
‘‘(J) the State shall establish judicial re-
view processes by which any applicant for or 
holder of a covered license may, within a rea-
sonable time period, petition to obtain judicial 
review of a revocation, suspension, or denial of 
the issuance or renewal of a covered license; 
‘‘(K) the State shall establish— 
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‘‘(i) standards and a process under 
which a family member of an individual 
who the family member fears is a danger 
to himself, herself, or others may petition 
for an extreme risk protection order; and 
‘‘(ii) standards for the termination or 
extension of an order described in clause 
(i); 
‘‘(L) the State shall establish processes 
under which— 
‘‘(i) an individual whose covered li-
cense is revoked or suspended, or whose 
application for issuance or renewal of a 
covered license is denied, shall surrender or 
transfer all firearms and ammunition that 
are or would have been covered by the li-
cense; and 
‘‘(ii) an individual who is subject to 
an extreme risk protection order or domes-
tic violence protection order shall surrender 
or transfer all firearms and ammunition in 
the possession of the individual; 
‘‘(M) the State shall establish requirements 
with which a firearms dealer licensee must com-
ply, which— 
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‘‘(i) shall include requirements relat-
ing to— 
‘‘(I) the location at which the li-
censee conducts firearm or ammuni-
tion transactions; 
‘‘(II) the manner in which the li-
censee records firearm or ammunition 
transactions; 
‘‘(III) background checks for em-
ployees of the licensee; and 
‘‘(IV) any other matter that the 
State determines appropriate; and 
‘‘(ii) may include requirements that a 
licensee— 
‘‘(I) maintain a permanent place 
of business— 
‘‘(aa) that is not a resi-
dence; and 
‘‘(bb) at which the licensee 
conducts all firearms or ammuni-
tion transactions; 
‘‘(II) submit to mandatory record 
and inventory inspections by a licens-
ing authority; 
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‘‘(III) maintain a sales record 
book at the permanent place of busi-
ness described in subclause (I) in ac-
cordance with standards established 
by the State; 
‘‘(IV) conduct a pre-employment 
background check on each potential 
employee to determine the suitability 
of any potential employee who may 
have direct and unmonitored contact 
with a firearm or ammunition; and 
‘‘(V) take any other action that 
the State determines appropriate; 
‘‘(N) the State shall promulgate rules and 
regulations to ensure the prompt collection, ex-
change, dissemination, and distribution of infor-
mation pertaining to the issuance, renewal, ex-
piration, suspension, or revocation of a covered 
license; 
‘‘(O) the State shall establish standards 
that are consistent with Federal and State 
law— 
‘‘(i) governing the transfer of a fire-
arm or ammunition; and 
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‘‘(ii) for identifying a prohibited indi-
vidual, in accordance with section 3061(b); 
‘‘(P) the State shall promulgate rules and 
regulations that require a dealer or private sell-
er of firearms or ammunition to verify the va-
lidity of a firearms license before the sale, rent-
al, or lease of any firearm or the sale of any 
ammunition; 
‘‘(Q) a dealer or private seller of firearms 
or ammunition shall report all sales, rentals, 
and leases of firearms, and sales of ammuni-
tion, to State authorities; 
‘‘(R) a dealers of firearms or ammunition 
shall notify the licensing authority when pre-
sented with an invalid or expired firearms li-
cense; 
‘‘(S) any firearms licensee whose firearm 
or ammunition is lost or stolen shall report the 
loss or theft to the licensing authority and 
State authorities within a reasonable time 
frame and in a manner established by the 
State; 
‘‘(T) an individual holding a firearms li-
cense or firearms dealer license shall renew the 
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license on a time frame established by the 
State; 
‘‘(U) an individual may not use the fire-
arms license of the individual to purchase a 
firearm or ammunition for— 
‘‘(i) the unlawful use of the firearm or 
ammunition by another individual; or 
‘‘(ii) the resale or other transfer of 
the firearm or ammunition to an unli-
censed individual; and 
‘‘(V)(i) it shall be unlawful to store or keep 
a firearm in any place unless the firearm is se-
cured in a locked container or equipped with a 
tamper-resistant mechanical lock or other safety 
device, properly engaged so as to render the 
firearm inoperable by any individual other than 
the owner or other lawfully authorized user; and 
‘‘(ii) for purposes of clause (i), a firearm 
shall not be considered to be stored or kept if 
carried by or under the control of the owner or 
other lawfully authorized user. 
‘‘(3) SEPARATE
AMMUNITION
DEALER
LICENSE 
PERMITTED.—A State that requires a license for dealing 
ammunition that is separate from a license for dealing 
firearms shall be deemed to have satisfied the require-
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ments under paragraph (2) relating to a firearms dealer 
license, as that license relates to the dealing of ammuni-
tion, if the State imposes the same requirements for an 
ammunition dealer license as are mandated under para-
graph (2) for a firearms dealer license, as that license re-
lates to the dealing of ammunition. 
‘‘(d) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to receive a grant 
under subsection (a), a State shall submit to the Assistant 
Attorney General an application at such time, in such 
manner, and containing such information as the Assistant 
Attorney General may require, including a description of 
how the State will use the grant to implement or maintain 
firearms and firearms dealer licensing requirements that 
include the elements described in subsection (c)(2). 
‘‘(e) ANNUAL REPORT.—Each State receiving a 
grant under subsection (a) shall submit to the Assistant 
Attorney General, for each fiscal year during which the 
State expends amounts received under the grant, a report, 
at such time and in such manner as the Assistant Attor-
ney General may reasonably require, that contains— 
‘‘(1) a summary of the activities carried out 
using amounts made available under the grant; 
‘‘(2) an assessment of whether the activities are 
achieving the elements described in subsection 
(c)(2); and 
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‘‘(3) such other information as the Assistant 
Attorney General may require. 
‘‘(f) 
LIMITATIONS
ON
THE
ALLOCATION
OF 
FUNDS.—Not more than 2 percent of the amount made 
available to carry out this section in any fiscal year may 
be used by the Assistant Attorney General for salaries and 
administrative expenses. 
‘‘(g) REALLOCATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—A recipi-
ent of a grant under subsection (a) shall return to the 
Assistant Attorney General any amounts received under 
the grant that are not expended for a purpose described 
in this section.’’. 
(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 
1001(a) of title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 
Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10261(a)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(29) There are authorized to be appropriated such 
sums as may be necessary to carry out part PP.’’. 
Æ 
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