I
104TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 169
To provide for the mandatory registration of handguns.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 4, 1995
Mrs. COLLINS of Illinois introduced the following bill; which was referred to
the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To provide for the mandatory registration of handguns.
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 Registration
Act of 1995’’.
SEC. 2. FEDERAL HANDGUN REGISTRATION SYSTEM TO
APPLY IN ALL STATES NOT ESTABLISHING
STATE 
HANDGUN 
REGISTRATION 
SYSTEM
THAT MEETS CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Beginning 2 years after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Federal handgun reg-
istration system to be established by the Attorney General
under section 3(a) and the amendment made by section
3(b) shall apply in any State during any period in which
the Attorney General finds, after opportunity for a hearing
on the record, that such State is not complying substan-
tially with the requirements of subsection (b) of this sec-
tion.
(b) REQUIREMENTS OF STATE HANDGUN REGISTRA-
TION SYSTEM.—The requirements of this subsection are
as follows:
(1) REGISTRATION REQUIREMENT.—State law
must require each individual who owns, possesses, or
controls a handgun in the State to register such
handgun—
(A) in the case of handguns owned, pos-
sessed, or controlled on or before the effective
date of the State law—
(i) with a State law enforcement agen-
cy; and
(ii) within 90 days after such effective
date; and
(B) in the case of handguns owned, pos-
sessed, or controlled after such effective date—
(i) with the licensed dealer (as defined
in section 921(a)(11) of title 18, United
States Code) from whom such handgun
was last purchased; and
(ii) at the time the handgun is first
owned, possessed, or controlled by the
individual.
(2) IMPOSITION
OF
PENALTIES
FOR
VIOLA-
TIONS.—State law must impose the following pen-
alties for knowing violation of the registration re-
quirement specified in paragraph (1):
(A) NON-SERIOUS
VIOLATIONS.—In the
case of a violation which is not a serious viola-
tion, the violator shall be imprisoned not less
than 1 year.
(B) SERIOUS VIOLATIONS.—In the case of
a violation which is a serious violation, the vio-
lator shall be imprisoned not less than 12 years.
(3) DEFINITION
OF
SERIOUS
VIOLATION.—
State law must define a serious violation of the reg-
istration requirement specified in paragraph (1) to
be any violation with respect to which 2 or more of
the following conditions are satisfied:
(A) MULTIPLE
UNREGISTERED
HAND-
GUNS.—The violation consists of the violator
possessing, owning, or controlling 2 or more un-
registered handguns.
(B) UNREGISTERED HANDGUN IS OF HIGH
CALIBER.—The caliber of any handgun which is
the subject of the violation is greater than 0.22.
(C) VIOLATOR HAS PREVIOUS FELONY OR
FIREARMS CONVICTION.—The violator has been
previously convicted of a felony, or of a viola-
tion of any Federal or State law relating to
firearms.
(D) UNREGISTERED
HANDGUN
READILY
ACCESSIBLE
TO
VIOLATOR.—Any 
handgun
which is the subject of the violation was readily
accessible to the violator at the time of the vio-
lation.
(4) EASILY RETRIEVABLE RECORD OF HAND-
GUNS.—State law must require the State to main-
tain an easily retrievable record identifying—
(A) each individual who—
(i) resides, or regularly or frequently
appears, in the State; and
(ii) possesses, owns, or controls a
handgun; and
(B) such handgun.
SEC. 3. FEDERAL HANDGUN REGISTRATION SYSTEM.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Attorney General shall
establish a Federal handgun registration system which
contains, in an easily retrievable record, information suffi-
cient to identify—
(1) each resident of each State to which this
subsection applies who owns, possesses, or controls
a handgun; and
(2) such handgun.
(b) HANDGUN
REGISTRATION
REQUIREMENT.—
Chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, is amended
by adding at the end the following:
‘‘§ 931. Registration of handguns
‘‘(a) Each individual who owns, possesses, or controls
a handgun in any State to which this section applies by
reason of section 2(a) of the Handgun Registration Act
of 1995 shall register such handgun—
‘‘(1) in the case of handguns owned, possessed,
or controlled on or before the effective date of
this section—
‘‘(A) with a Federal, State, or local law en-
forcement agency or the licensed dealer, if any,
from whom such handgun was last purchased;
and
‘‘(B) within 90 days after such effective
date; and
‘‘(2) in the case of handguns owned, possessed,
or controlled after such effective date—
‘‘(A) with the licensed dealer from whom
such handgun was last purchased; and
‘‘(B) at the time the handgun is first
owned, possessed, or controlled by the individ-
ual.
‘‘(b) Whoever knowingly violates subsection (a) shall
be fined not more than $250,000, imprisoned not less than
15 years, or both. The court shall not suspend a sentence
of imprisonment imposed for an offense under this section,
and shall not impose a probationary sentence for an of-
fense under this section.
‘‘(c) As used in subsection (a):
‘‘(1) The term ‘handgun’ means a pistol or re-
volver originally designed to be fired by the use of
a single hand and which is designed to fire or capa-
ble of firing fixed cartridge ammunition, and any
other firearm originally designed to be fired by the
use of a single hand.
‘‘(2) The term ‘State’ includes the District of
Columbia and the territories and possessions of the
United States.’’.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
subsection (b) shall apply to conduct engaged in 2 or more
years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 4. TERMINATION OF CERTAIN FEDERAL ASSISTANCE.
The Attorney General shall order the termination of
all assistance under each of parts D, E, and G of title
I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of
1968 to each State, and each recipient in such State, dur-
ing any period in which the Federal handgun registration
system established under section 3(a) of this Act applies
to such State.
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act:
(1) HANDGUN.—The term ‘‘handgun’’ means a
pistol or revolver originally designed to be fired by
the use of a single hand and which is designed to
fire or capable of firing fixed cartridge ammunition,
and any other firearm (as defined in section
921(a)(3) of title 18, United States Code) originally
designed to be fired by the use of a single hand.
(2) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes the
District of Columbia and the territories and posses-
sions of the United States.
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