I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5836 
To direct the Attorney General to prioritize the investigation and prosecution 
of Federal firearms offenses, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 10, 2020 
Mrs. WAGNER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To direct the Attorney General to prioritize the investigation 
and prosecution of Federal firearms offenses, 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 ‘‘Prosecuting Gun 
Crimes Saves Lives Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds as follows: 
(1) Promoting public safety, addressing gun- 
based homicides, and enforcing Federal firearms 
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laws are among the highest priorities of the Con-
gress. 
(2) Point-of-sale background checks can reduce 
the risk of gun-based homicides by preventing crimi-
nals and prohibited persons from purchasing fire-
arms while protecting access for law-abiding citizens. 
(3) Under the Gun Control Act of 1968, cat-
egories of persons who may pose a threat to public 
safety, including violent felons, fugitives from jus-
tice, and persons convicted of domestic violence 
crimes, are prohibited from shipping, transporting, 
receiving, or possessing firearms or ammunition. 
(4) Thousands of prohibited persons illegally at-
tempt to purchase firearms every year. In 2017, the 
FBI’s NICS Section referred 112,090 denied trans-
actions to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms 
and Explosives (ATF). Of these NICS denials, only 
12, or 0.09 percent, were prosecuted in 2017. 
(5) On March 12, 2018, former Attorney Gen-
eral Jeff Sessions issued a memo directing Depart-
ment of Justice prosecutors to prioritize ‘‘vigorous 
and appropriate’’ prosecution of cases involving false 
statements on Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Ex-
plosives Form 4473. The memo stated that ‘‘Crimi-
nals and other prohibited persons who attempt to 
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thwart the background check process by lying on the 
required forms threaten to undermine this important 
crime prevention tool’’ and that ‘‘we must vigilantly 
protect the integrity of the background system 
through appropriate prosecution of those who at-
tempt to circumvent the law’’. The Department of 
Justice’s efforts to reclaim the integrity of the back-
ground check system yielded a 23-percent increase 
in the number of defendants charged with unlawful 
possession of a firearm in the 3 months following 
issuance of the memo. 
(6) On November 13, 2019, Attorney General 
William Barr announced the launch of a new initia-
tive, Project Guardian, to reduce gun-based homi-
cides by investigating, prosecuting, and preventing 
firearm crimes. Project Guardian will address gun- 
based homicides by encouraging coordinated pros-
ecution efforts, enforcement of the background check 
system, improved information-sharing, response to 
mental health denials, and crime gun intelligence co-
ordination. 
(7) Congress must ensure Federal, State, and 
local entities tasked with preventing prohibited indi-
viduals from purchasing firearms, recovering fire-
arms from prohibited individuals, and investigating 
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and prosecuting lying and buying and lying and try-
ing cases have sufficient information and resources 
to carry out their missions and promote public safe-
ty. 
(8) Congress urges the Attorney General to 
prioritize the investigation and prosecution of Fed-
eral firearm offenses to protect Americans and pre-
vent and deter the illegal purchase and possession of 
firearms. 
SEC. 3. INFORMATION-SHARING WITH STATE FUSION CEN-
TERS. 
Not later than 60 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Attorney General may direct the Bu-
reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to reg-
ularly provide to State and local law enforcement agencies, 
including through State law enforcement fusion centers 
(as defined in section 210A(j)(1) of the Homeland Secu-
rity Act of 2002) a report listing individuals for whom 
the National Instant Criminal Background Check System 
has issued firearm transfer denials, including the basis for 
the denial, with the purpose of equipping law enforcement 
with the information they need to prevent persons from 
illegally purchasing, receiving, or possessing firearms. 
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SEC. 4. POINT OF CONTACT AND PARTIAL POINT OF CON-
TACT STATE GRANTS TO INCREASE INVES-
TIGATIONS AND PROSECUTIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 
the Attorney General may make grants to eligible States 
to investigate firearm transfer denials and increase inves-
tigations and prosecutions of persons who illegally pur-
chase, possess, or receive a firearm, or illegally attempt 
to purchase, possess, or receive a firearm. 
(b) ELIGIBILITY.—An eligible State is any State that 
is a point of contact State or partial point of contact State 
for the national instant criminal background check sys-
tem. 
(c) APPLICATION.—To receive a grant under this sec-
tion, a State shall submit to the Attorney General an ap-
plication at such time, in such manner, and containing 
such information as the Attorney General may reasonably 
require. 
(d) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec-
tion, the Attorney General may give priority to each eligi-
ble State that— 
(1) establishes a task force that includes enti-
ties such as State and local law enforcement agen-
cies, State and local prosecutors, agencies con-
ducting background checks, and representatives 
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from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and 
Explosives; and 
(2) certifies to the Attorney General that the 
State is committed to investigating and prosecuting 
persons who illegally purchase, possess, or receive 
firearms or illegally attempt to purchase, possess, or 
receive firearms. 
(e) USE OF FUNDS.—A State that receives a grant 
under this section shall use grant funds to coordinate and 
execute investigations and prosecutions of persons who il-
legally purchase, possess, or receive a firearm, or illegally 
attempt such purchase, possession, or receipt, including 
the illegal purchase or possession of a firearm based on 
a prior felony or any relevant misdemeanor convictions. 
(f) EVALUATION.—Each State that receives a grant 
under this section shall submit to the Attorney General, 
not later than 1 year after receipt of such grant, an eval-
uation in such form and containing such information as 
the Attorney General may reasonably require. 
(g) AUTHORIZATION OF FUNDING.—There is author-
ized to be appropriated to carry out this section not more 
than $7,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 
2025. 
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SEC. 5. INCREASING FEDERAL PROSECUTION OF GUN VIO-
LENCE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General 
shall establish in each jurisdiction described in subsection 
(c) a program that meets the requirements of subsection 
(b), which shall be known as the ‘‘Prosecute Gun Crimes 
Program’’. 
(b) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—Each program estab-
lished under subsection (a) shall, for the jurisdiction con-
cerned— 
(1) require that the United States attorney des-
ignate not less than 1 assistant United States attor-
neys to prosecute violations of Federal firearms 
laws; 
(2) provide for coordination with State and 
local law enforcement officials in the identification of 
violations of Federal firearms laws; 
(3) provide for the establishment of agreements 
with State and local law enforcement officials for the 
referral to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms 
and Explosives and the United States attorney for 
the district in which the jurisdiction is located for 
prosecution of persons arrested for violations of sec-
tion 922 or 924 of title 18, United States Code, or 
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section 5861 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
relating to firearms; 
(4) ensure that each person so referred be 
charged with a violation of the most serious Federal 
firearm offense consistent with the act committed, 
while preserving prosecutorial discretion; 
(5) provide for the hiring of agents for the Bu-
reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives 
to investigate violations of the provisions of law 
specified in paragraph (3); and 
(6) provide for the establishment of multijuris-
dictional task forces, coordinated by the Executive 
Office of the United States attorneys, to investigate 
and prosecute illegal straw purchasing rings that 
purchase firearms in one jurisdiction and transfer 
them in another. 
(c) COVERED JURISDICTIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 
the jurisdictions described in this subsection are— 
(A) the 15 cities or jurisdictions within the 
50 States with a population equal to or greater 
than 100,000 persons that had the highest per 
capita rate of gun-based homicides according to 
the uniform crime report of the Federal Bureau 
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of Investigation for the most recent year avail-
able; and 
(B) the 3 tribal jurisdictions that have the 
highest gun-based homicide crime rates, as de-
termined by the Attorney General. 
(d) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually there-
after, the Attorney General shall submit to the Committee 
on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the 
Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report con-
taining the following information: 
(1) The number of individuals indicted for such 
violations of Federal firearms laws during that year. 
(2) The increase or decrease in the number of 
individuals indicted for such violations of Federal 
firearms laws during that year under a program es-
tablished under this section when compared with the 
year preceding that year. 
(3) To the extent the information is available, 
the average length of the sentences of imprisonment 
of the individuals convicted of violations of Federal 
firearms laws under such a program. 
(4) The number of multijurisdictional task 
forces established and the number of individuals ar-
rested, indicted, convicted or acquitted of charges for 
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violations of the crimes specified in subsection 
(b)(3). 
(e) LIMITATIONS
ON AUTHORIZATION
OF APPRO-
PRIATIONS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—For the salaries and ex-
penses of assistant United States attorneys and Bu-
reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives 
agents participating in the program established 
under this section, there are authorized to be appro-
priated $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021, 
2022, and 2023. 
(2) USE OF FUNDS.— 
(A) ASSISTANT
UNITED
STATES
ATTOR-
NEYS.—The assistant United States attorneys 
hired using amounts made available under 
paragraph (1) of this subsection shall prosecute 
violations of Federal firearms laws specified in 
subsection (b)(3). 
(B) ATF AGENTS.—The Bureau of Alco-
hol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents 
hired using amounts made available under 
paragraph (1) of this subsection shall, to the 
maximum extent practicable, concentrate their 
investigations on violations of Federal firearms 
laws specified in subsection (b)(3). 
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SEC. 6. PROSECUTION OF FELONS WHO ATTEMPT TO ILLE-
GALLY PURCHASE FIREARMS. 
(a) TASK FORCE.— 
(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 
the Department of Justice a task force, which shall 
be known as the Felon Firearm Task Force (re-
ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Task Force’’), to 
strengthen the efforts of the Department of Justice 
to investigate and prosecute cases of convicted felons 
who illegally attempt to purchase a firearm. 
(2) MEMBERSHIP.—The members of the Task 
Force shall be— 
(A) the Deputy Attorney General, who 
shall serve as the Chairperson of the Task 
Force; 
(B) the Assistant Attorney General for the 
Criminal Division; 
(C) the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, 
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; 
(D) the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
Investigation; and 
(E) such other officers or employees of the 
Department of Justice as the Attorney General 
may designate. 
(3) DUTIES.—The Task Force shall provide— 
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(A) direction for the investigation and 
prosecution of cases of convicted felons at-
tempting to illegally purchase a firearm; and 
(B) recommendations to the Attorney Gen-
eral relating to— 
(i) the allocation and reallocation of 
resources of the Department of Justice for 
investigation and prosecution of such 
cases; 
(ii) enhancing cooperation among enti-
ties of the Federal Government in the in-
vestigation and prosecution of such cases; 
(iii) enhancing cooperation among 
Federal, State, and local authorities re-
sponsible for the investigation and prosecu-
tion of such cases; and 
(iv) changes in rules, regulations, or 
policy to improve the effective investigation 
and prosecution of such cases. 
(4) MEETINGS.—The Task Force shall meet 
not less than once each year. 
(5) TERMINATION.—The Task Force shall ter-
minate on the date that is 5 years after the date of 
the enactment of this Act. 
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(b) AUTHORIZATION FOR USE OF FUNDS.—Section 
524(c)(1) of title 28, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (H), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 
the end; 
(2) in subparagraph (I), by striking the period 
at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(J) the investigation and prosecution of 
cases of convicted felons who illegally attempt 
to purchase a firearm, in accordance with sec-
tion 6(a) of the Prosecuting Gun Crimes Saves 
Lives Act, except that— 
‘‘(i) not more than $5,000,000 shall 
be available to the Attorney General for 
each of fiscal years 2021 through 2024 
under this subparagraph; and 
‘‘(ii) not more than 5 percent of the 
amounts made available under this sub-
paragraph may be used for the administra-
tive costs of the task force established 
under such section.’’. 
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SEC. 7. REPORT TO CONGRESS ON FIREARMS PROSECU-
TIONS. 
(a) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Beginning February 1, 
2021, and on February 1 of each year thereafter through 
2029, the Attorney General shall submit to the Commit-
tees on the Judiciary and on Appropriations of the Senate 
and of the House of Representatives a report containing 
the information furnished under subsection (b) during the 
fiscal year that ended on September 30 of the preceding 
year. 
(b) SUBJECT OF ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 
90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Attorney General shall require each component of the De-
partment of Justice, including each Office of the United 
States Attorney, to furnish for the purposes of the report 
required by subsection (a) information relating to any case 
presented to the Department of Justice for review or pros-
ecution, in which the objective facts of the case provide 
probable cause to believe that there has been a violation 
of section 922 or 924 of title 18, United States Code, or 
section 5861 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 
(c) ELEMENTS OF ANNUAL REPORT.—With respect 
to each case described in subsection (b), the report sub-
mitted under subsection (a) shall include information indi-
cating— 
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(7) in any case described in paragraph (6) in 
which the plea agreement did not require the indi-
vidual to plead guilty or enter a plea of nolo 
contendere, or otherwise cause a court to enter a 
conviction against that individual for a violation of 
the relevant provision of law, the charges to which 
the individual pled guilty; 
(8) in the case of an indictment, information, or 
other charge described in paragraph (3), in which 
the charging document contains a count alleging a 
violation of the relevant provision of law, the result 
of any trial of the charges; 
(9) in the case of an indictment, information, or 
other charge described in paragraph (3), in which 
the charging document did not contain a count or 
counts alleging a violation of the relevant provision 
of law, the nature of the other charges brought and 
the result of any trial of such other charges brought; 
(10) the number of persons who attempted to 
purchase a firearm but were denied a firearm be-
cause of a background check conducted in accord-
ance with section 922(t) of title 18, United States 
Code; and 
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