I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2159 
To increase public safety by permitting the Attorney General to deny the 
transfer of a firearm or the issuance of firearms or explosives licenses 
to a known or suspected dangerous terrorist. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 29, 2009 
Mr. KING of New York (for himself, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. CASTLE, Mrs. MCCAR-
THY of New York, Mr. KIRK, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, and Mr. SMITH 
of New Jersey) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To increase public safety by permitting the Attorney General 
to deny the transfer of a firearm or the issuance of 
firearms or explosives licenses to a known or suspected 
dangerous terrorist. 
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 ‘‘Denying Firearms and 
Explosives to Dangerous Terrorists Act of 2009’’. 
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SEC. 2. GRANTING THE ATTORNEY GENERAL THE AUTHOR-
ITY TO DENY THE SALE, DELIVERY, OR 
TRANSFER OF A FIREARM OR THE ISSUANCE 
OF A FIREARMS OR EXPLOSIVES LICENSE OR 
PERMIT TO DANGEROUS TERRORISTS. 
(a) STANDARD FOR EXERCISING ATTORNEY GEN-
ERAL DISCRETION REGARDING TRANSFERRING FIRE-
ARMS OR ISSUING FIREARMS PERMITS TO DANGEROUS 
TERRORISTS.—Chapter 44 of title 18, United States 
Code, is amended— 
(1) by inserting the following new section after 
section 922: 
‘‘§ 922A. Attorney General’s discretion to deny trans-
fer of a firearm 
‘‘The Attorney General may deny the transfer of a 
firearm pursuant to section 922(t)(1)(B)(ii) if the Attor-
ney General determines that the transferee is known (or 
appropriately suspected) to be or have been engaged in 
conduct constituting, in preparation for, in aid of, or re-
lated to terrorism, or providing material support thereof, 
and the Attorney General has a reasonable belief that the 
prospective transferee may use a firearm in connection 
with terrorism.’’; 
(2) by inserting the following new section after 
section 922A: 
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‘‘§ 922B. Attorney General’s discretion regarding ap-
plicants for firearm permits which would 
qualify for the exemption provided under 
section 922(t)(3) 
‘‘The Attorney General may determine that an appli-
cant for a firearm permit which would qualify for an ex-
emption under section 922(t) is known (or appropriately 
suspected) to be or have been engaged in conduct consti-
tuting, in preparation for, in aid of, or related to ter-
rorism, or providing material support thereof, and the At-
torney General has a reasonable belief that the applicant 
may use a firearm in connection with terrorism.’’; and 
(3) in section 921(a), by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(36) The term ‘terrorism’ means ‘international ter-
rorism’ as defined in section 2331(1), and ‘domestic ter-
rorism’ as defined in section 2331(5). 
‘‘(37) The term ‘material support’ means ‘material 
support or resources’ within the meaning of section 2339A 
or 2339B. 
‘‘(38) The term ‘responsible person’ means an indi-
vidual who has the power, directly or indirectly, to direct 
or cause the direction of the management and policies of 
the applicant or licensee pertaining to firearms.’’. 
(b) EFFECT
OF
ATTORNEY
GENERAL
DISCRE-
TIONARY DENIAL THROUGH
THE NATIONAL INSTANT 
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CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM (NICS) ON 
FIREARMS PERMITS.—Section 922(t) of such title is 
amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1)(B)(ii), by inserting ‘‘or 
State law, or that the Attorney General has deter-
mined to deny the transfer of a firearm pursuant to 
section 922A’’ before the semicolon; 
(2) in paragraph (2), by inserting after ‘‘or 
State law’’ the following: ‘‘or if the Attorney General 
has not determined to deny the transfer of a firearm 
pursuant to section 922A’’; 
(3) in paragraph (3)(A)(i)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub-
clause (I); and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(III) was issued after a check of the system 
established pursuant to paragraph (1);’’; 
(4) in paragraph (3)(A)— 
(A) by adding ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause 
(ii); and 
(B) by adding after and below the end the 
following: 
‘‘(iii) the State issuing the permit 
agrees to deny the permit application if 
such other person is the subject of a deter-
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mination by the Attorney General pursuant 
to section 922B;’’; 
(5) in paragraph (4), by inserting after ‘‘or 
State law,’’ the following: ‘‘or if the Attorney Gen-
eral has not determined to deny the transfer of a 
firearm pursuant to section 922A,’’; and 
(6) in paragraph (5), by inserting after ‘‘or 
State law,’’ the following: ‘‘or if the Attorney Gen-
eral has determined to deny the transfer of a fire-
arm pursuant to section 922A,’’. 
(c) UNLAWFUL SALE OR DISPOSITION OF FIREARM 
BASED
ON ATTORNEY GENERAL DISCRETIONARY DE-
NIAL.—Section 922(d) of such title is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 
(8); 
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (9) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (9) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(10) has been the subject of a determination 
by the Attorney General pursuant to section 922A, 
922B, 923(d)(1)(H), or 923(e) of this title.’’. 
(d) ATTORNEY GENERAL DISCRETIONARY DENIAL 
AS PROHIBITOR.—Section 922(g) of such title is amend-
ed— 
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(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 
(8); 
(2) by striking the comma at the end of para-
graph (9) and inserting; ‘‘; or’’; and 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (9) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(10) who has received actual notice of the At-
torney General’s determination made pursuant to 
section 922A, 922B, 923(d)(1)(H), or 923(e) of this 
title.’’. 
(e) ATTORNEY GENERAL DISCRETIONARY DENIAL 
OF FEDERAL FIREARMS LICENSES.—Section 923(d)(1) of 
such title is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘Any’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as 
provided in subparagraph (H), any’’; 
(2) in subparagraph (F)(iii), by striking ‘‘and’’ 
at the end; 
(3) in subparagraph (G), by striking the period 
and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(H) The Attorney General may deny a li-
cense application if the Attorney General deter-
mines that the applicant (including any respon-
sible person) is known (or appropriately sus-
pected) to be or have been engaged in conduct 
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constituting, in preparation for, in aid of, or re-
lated to terrorism, or providing material sup-
port thereof, and the Attorney General has a 
reasonable belief that the applicant may use a 
firearm in connection with terrorism.’’. 
(f) DISCRETIONARY REVOCATION OF FEDERAL FIRE-
ARMS LICENSES.—Section 923(e) of such title is amend-
ed— 
(1) in the 1st sentence— 
(A) by inserting after ‘‘revoke’’ the fol-
lowing: ‘‘—(1)’’; and 
(B) by striking the period and inserting a 
semicolon; 
(2) in the 2nd sentence— 
(A) by striking ‘‘The Attorney General 
may, after notice and opportunity for hearing, 
revoke’’ and insert ‘‘(2)’’; and 
(B) by striking the period and inserting ‘‘; 
or’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) any license issued under this section if the 
Attorney General determines that the holder of the 
license (including any responsible person) is known 
(or appropriately suspected) to be or have been en-
gaged in conduct constituting, in preparation for, in 
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aid of, or related to terrorism, or providing material 
support thereof, and the Attorney General has a rea-
sonable belief that the applicant may use a firearm 
in connection with terrorism.’’. 
(g) ATTORNEY GENERAL’S ABILITY TO WITHHOLD 
INFORMATION IN FIREARMS LICENSE DENIAL AND REV-
OCATION SUIT.—Section 923(f) of such title is amended— 
(1) in the 1st sentence of paragraph (1), by in-
serting ‘‘, except that if the denial or revocation is 
pursuant to subsection (d)(1)(H) or (e)(3), then any 
information on which the Attorney General relied for 
this determination may be withheld from the peti-
tioner if the Attorney General determines that dis-
closure of the information would likely compromise 
national security’’ before the period; and 
(2) in paragraph (3), by inserting after the 3rd 
sentence the following: ‘‘With respect to any infor-
mation withheld from the aggrieved party under 
paragraph (1), the United States may submit, and 
the court may rely on, summaries or redacted 
versions of documents containing information the 
disclosure of which the Attorney General has deter-
mined would likely compromise national security.’’. 
(h) ATTORNEY GENERAL’S ABILITY TO WITHHOLD 
INFORMATION
IN RELIEF FROM DISABILITIES LAW-
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SUITS.—Section 925(c) of such title is amended by insert-
ing after the 3rd sentence the following: ‘‘If receipt of a 
firearms by the person would violate section 922(g)(10), 
any information which the Attorney General relied on for 
this determination may be withheld from the applicant if 
the Attorney General determines that disclosure of the in-
formation would likely compromise national security. In 
responding to the petition, the United States may submit, 
and the court may rely on, summaries or redacted versions 
of documents containing information the disclosure of 
which the Attorney General has determined would likely 
compromise national security.’’. 
(i) PENALTIES.—Section 924(k) of such title is 
amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 
(2); 
(2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘, or’’ and in-
serting ‘‘; or’’; and 
(3) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(4) constitutes an act of terrorism (as defined 
in section 921(a)(36)), or material support thereof 
(as defined in section 921(a)(37)), or’’. 
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(j) REMEDY FOR ERRONEOUS DENIAL OF FIREARM 
OR FIREARM PERMIT EXEMPTION.—Section 925A of such 
title is amended— 
(1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘Rem-
edy for erroneous denial of firearm’’ and 
inserting ‘‘Remedies’’; 
(2) by striking ‘‘Any person denied a firearm 
pursuant to subsection (s) or (t) of section 922’’ and 
inserting the following: 
‘‘(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), any person 
denied a firearm pursuant to section 922(t) or pursuant 
to a determination made under section 922B,’’; and 
(3) by adding after and below the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(b) In any case in which the Attorney General has 
denied the transfer of a firearm to a prospective transferee 
pursuant to section 922A or has made a determination 
regarding a firearm permit applicant pursuant to section 
922B, an action challenging the determination may be 
brought against the United States. The petition must be 
filed not later than 60 days after the petitioner has re-
ceived actual notice of the Attorney General’s determina-
tion made pursuant to section 922A or 922B. The court 
shall sustain the Attorney General’s determination on a 
showing by the United States by a preponderance of evi-
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dence that the Attorney General’s determination satisfied 
the requirements of section 922A or 922B. To make this 
showing, the United States may submit, and the court 
may rely on, summaries or redacted versions of documents 
containing information the disclosure of which the Attor-
ney General has determined would likely compromise na-
tional security. On request of the petitioner or the court’s 
own motion, the court may review the full, undisclosed 
documents ex parte and in camera. The court shall deter-
mine whether the summaries or redacted versions, as the 
case may be, are fair and accurate representations of the 
underlying documents. The court shall not consider the 
full, undisclosed documents in deciding whether the Attor-
ney General’s determination satisfies the requirements of 
section 922A or 922B.’’. 
(k) PROVISION OF GROUNDS UNDERLYING INELIGI-
BILITY DETERMINATION
BY
THE NATIONAL INSTANT 
CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK SYSTEM.—Section 103 
of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (Public 
Law 103–159) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (f)— 
(A) by inserting after ‘‘is ineligible to re-
ceive a firearm,’’ the following: ‘‘or the Attorney 
General has made a determination regarding an 
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(2) by inserting after paragraph (7) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(8) The Attorney General may deny the 
issuance of a permit or license to an applicant if the 
Attorney General determines that the applicant or a 
responsible person or employee possessor thereof is 
known (or appropriately suspected) to be or have 
been engaged in conduct constituting, in preparation 
of, in aid of, or related to terrorism, or providing 
material support thereof, and the Attorney General 
has a reasonable belief that the person may use ex-
plosives in connection with terrorism.’’. 
(o) ATTORNEY GENERAL DISCRETIONARY REVOCA-
TION
OF FEDERAL EXPLOSIVES LICENSES
AND PER-
MITS.—Section 843(d) of such title is amended— 
(1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ in the first sentence after 
‘‘if’’; and 
(2) by striking the period at the end of the first 
sentence and inserting the following: ‘‘; or (2) the 
Attorney General determines that the licensee or 
holder (or any responsible person or employee pos-
sessor thereof) is known (or appropriately suspected) 
to be or have been engaged in conduct constituting, 
in preparation for, in aid of, or related to terrorism, 
or providing material support thereof, and that the 
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Attorney General has a reasonable belief that the 
person may use explosives in connection with ter-
rorism.’’. 
(p) ATTORNEY GENERAL’S ABILITY TO WITHHOLD 
INFORMATION IN EXPLOSIVES LICENSE AND PERMIT DE-
NIAL AND REVOCATION SUITS.—Section 843(e) of such 
title is amended— 
(1) in the 1st sentence of paragraph (1), by in-
serting ‘‘except that if the denial or revocation is 
based on a determination under subsection (b)(8) or 
(d)(2), then any information which the Attorney 
General relied on for the determination may be with-
held from the petitioner if the Attorney General de-
termines that disclosure of the information would 
likely compromise national security’’ before the pe-
riod; and 
(2) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end the 
following: ‘‘In responding to any petition for review 
of a denial or revocation based on a determination 
under section 843(b)(8) or (d)(2), the United States 
may submit, and the court may rely on, summaries 
or redacted versions of documents containing infor-
mation the disclosure of which the Attorney General 
has determined would likely compromise national se-
curity.’’. 
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(q) ABILITY TO WITHHOLD INFORMATION IN COM-
MUNICATIONS
TO EMPLOYERS.—Section 843(h)(2) of 
such title is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or sec-
tion 843(b)(1) (on grounds of terrorism) of this 
title,’’ after ‘‘section 842(i),’’; and 
(2) in subparagraph (B)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘or section 843(b)(8)’’ 
after ‘‘section 842(i)’’; and 
(B) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘, except 
that any information that the Attorney General 
relied on for a determination pursuant to sec-
tion 843(b)(8) may be withheld if the Attorney 
General concludes that disclosure of the infor-
mation would likely compromise national secu-
rity’’ before the semicolon. 
(r) CONFORMING AMENDMENT TO IMMIGRATION AND 
NATIONALITY ACT.—Section 101(a)(43)(E)(ii) of the Im-
migration 
and 
Nationality 
Act 
(8 
U.S.C. 
1101(a)(43)(E)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘ or (5)’’ and 
inserting ‘‘(5), or (10)’’. 
Æ 
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