I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4000
To amend chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, to require ballistics
testing of all firearms manufactured and all firearms in custody of
Federal agencies, and to add ballistics testing to existing firearms en-
forcement strategies.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 16, 2000
Mr. BLAGOJEVICH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
To amend chapter 44 of title 18, United States Code, to
require ballistics testing of all firearms manufactured
and all firearms in custody of Federal agencies, and
to add ballistics testing to existing firearms enforcement
strategies.
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 ‘‘Crime Bullet Tracing
Initiative’’.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to provide for ballistics testing of all new
firearms for sale to assist in the identification of
firearms used in crimes;
(2) to require ballistics testing of all firearms in
custody of Federal agencies to assist in the identi-
fication of firearms used in crimes; and
(3) to add ballistics testing to existing firearms
enforcement programs.
SEC. 3. DEFINITION OF BALLISTICS.
Section 921(a) of title 18, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(35) BALLISTICS.—The term ‘ballistics’ means
a comparative analysis of fired bullets and cartridge
casings to identify the firearm from which bullets
were discharged, through identification of the unique
characteristics that each firearm imprints on bullets
and cartridge casings.’’.
SEC. 4. TEST FIRING AND AUTOMATED STORAGE OF BAL-
LISTICS RECORDS.
(a) AMENDMENTS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Chapter 44 of title 18,
United States Code, is amended by adding at the
end the following:
‘‘§ 931. Test firing and automated storage of ballistics
records
‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—It shall be unlawful for any li-
censed manufacturer or licensed importer to sell, deliver,
or otherwise transfer any firearm to any person, without
first—
‘‘(1) test-firing the firearm;
‘‘(2) preparing ballistics records of the fired
bullet and cartridge casings from the test fire; and
‘‘(3) making the records available to the Sec-
retary for entry in a computerized database.
‘‘(b) CIVIL PENALTIES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—
‘‘(A) SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF LI-
CENSE; CIVIL
PENALTIES.—With respect to
each violation of subsection (a) by a licensed
manufacturer or licensed importer, the Sec-
retary may, after notice and opportunity for
hearing—
‘‘(i) suspend the license for up to 1
year or revoke the license; or
‘‘(ii) assess a civil penalty of not more
than $10,000.
‘‘(B) REVIEW.—An action of the Secretary
under this paragraph may be reviewed only as
provided in section 923(f).
‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE
REMEDIES.—The sus-
pension or revocation of a license or the imposition
of a civil penalty under paragraph (1) does not pre-
clude any administrative remedy that is available to
the Secretary under other law.
‘‘(c) LIABILITY.—Nothing in this section creates a
cause of action against any Federal firearms licensee or
any other person for any civil liability except for imposi-
tion of a civil penalty under subsection (b).
‘‘(d) FEDERAL ASSISTANCE
TO MANUFACTURERS
AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General and
the Secretary shall assist firearm manufacturers and
importers 
in 
complying 
with 
subsection 
(a)
through—
‘‘(A) the acquisition, disposition, and up-
grades of computerized ballistics equipment and
bullet recovery equipment to be placed at the
sites of licensed manufacturers and importers
or at regional centers established by the Sec-
retary;
‘‘(B) the hiring or designation of personnel
necessary to develop and maintain a database
of ballistics records, research and evaluation;
and
‘‘(C) any other steps necessary to make
ballistics testing effective.
‘‘(2) ACCESS TO BALLISTICS RECORDS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General
and the Secretary shall establish a system
through which State and local law enforcement
agencies, through online computer technology,
can promptly access ballistics records stored
under this section, as soon as such a capability
is available.
‘‘(B) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this section, the
Attorney General and the Secretary shall sub-
mit to the Committee on Appropriations of the
Senate and the Committee on Appropriations of
the 
House 
of 
Representatives 
a 
report
explaining—
‘‘(i) the capacity to provide the online
access required under subparagraph (A)
and the process by which the online access
will be implemented; and
‘‘(ii) any future technical or legal
changes that may be required to make
such a capability available, including esti-
mates of the costs of making those
changes.
‘‘(e) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of this section and annually thereafter, the
Attorney General and the Secretary shall submit to the
Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Com-
mittee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives
a report regarding the impact of this subsection, including
the number of Federal and State criminal investigations,
arrests, indictments, and prosecutions of all cases in which
access to ballistics records provided under this section
served as a valuable investigative tool.
‘‘(f) INDUSTRY OUTREACH AND COOPERATION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General and
the Secretary shall work cooperatively with rep-
resentatives of the firearm industry (including fire-
arm manufacturers and importers) to—
‘‘(A) provide education about the role of
ballistics as part of a comprehensive firearm
crime reduction strategy; and
‘‘(B) provide for the coordination among
Federal, State, and local law enforcement and
regulatory agencies and the firearm industry to
curb firearm-related crime and illegal firearm
trafficking.
‘‘(2) CONCENTRATED
EFFORTS.—In imple-
menting paragraph (1), the Attorney General and
the Secretary shall concentrate on outreach with—
‘‘(A) the manufacturers and importers of
firearms that have been designated as the top
10 crime guns used in violent crime;
‘‘(B) firearm manufacturers and importers
that have voluntarily agreed to participate as a
pilot site for the National Integrated Ballistics
Information Network;
‘‘(C) firearm manufacturers and importers
that manufacture or import more than 1,000
firearms per year, as reported in the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Annual Fire-
arms Manufacturing and Export Report or as
determined from informatiion obtained in an-
nual regulatory inspection audits conducted by
the Secretary; and
‘‘(D) firearm manufacturers and importers
that have a policy that requires the test firing
of all firearms prior to transfer.
‘‘(3) ANNUAL REPORTS AND EVALUATION.—
‘‘(A) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 1
year after the date of enactment of this section
and annually thereafter, the Secretary and the
Attorney General shall submit to the Committee
on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Com-
mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep-
resentatives a report containing—
‘‘(i) a statement of the number of
firearm manufacturers and importers and
other representatives of the firearm indus-
try participating in the outreach effort;
‘‘(ii) the number and type of per-
sonnel of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
and Firearms and the Department of Jus-
tice hired and assigned to carry out this
subsection;
‘‘(iii) a summary of the activities es-
tablished by firearm manufacturers and
importers as a result of their participation
in the outreach effort;
‘‘(iv) an evaluation of any changes in
firearm-related crime pertaining to par-
ticular types of firearms manufactured by
a firearm manufacturer or importer that is
an active participant in the outreach effort;
‘‘(v) the volume of ballistics records
compiled as a result of the mandatory bal-
listics testing by participating firearm
manufacturers and importers;
‘‘(vi) for each firearm manufacturer
and firearm importer, the number of times
a tracing request resulted in the identifica-
tion of a firearm manufactured or im-
ported by the firearm manufacturer and
firearm importer; and
‘‘(vii) an evaluation of the manner in
which the implementation of ballistics test-
ing affected the volume of production or
importation by participating firearm manu-
facturers and importers.
‘‘(B) 
AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIA-
TIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated
to the Department of Justice and the Depart-
ment of the Treasury for each of fiscal years
2000 through 2003, $38,306,000 to carry out
this subsection, including—
‘‘(i) installation of ballistics equipment
and bullet recovery equipment;
‘‘(ii) establishment of regional centers
for firearm testing;
‘‘(iii) salaries and expenses of nec-
essary personnel; and
‘‘(iv) research and evaluation.
‘‘(g) MANDATORY BALLISTICS TESTING OF FIRE-
ARMS IN FEDERAL CUSTODY.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary and the At-
torney General shall conduct mandatory ballistics
testing of all firearms taken into the custody of, or
procured or utilized by, their respective agencies.
‘‘(2) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.—
There are authorized to be appropriated for fiscal
years 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003 such sums as are
necessary to carry out this subsection.’’.
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis
for chapter 44, United States Code, is amended by
adding at the end the following:
‘‘931. Test firing and automated storage of ballistics records.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
subsection (a) take effect on the date on which the Attor-
ney General and the Secretary of the Treasury, in con-
sultation with the National Integrated Ballistics Informa-
tion Network, certify that the ballistics systems used by
the Department of Justice and the Department of the
Treasury are interoperable.
SEC. 5. COMPREHENSIVE FIREARM CRIME REDUCTION
STRATEGY.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treas-
ury and the Attorney General shall establish in the juris-
dictions selected under subsection (c) a comprehensive
firearm crime reduction strategy that meets the require-
ments of subsection (b).
(b) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Each program established
under subsection (a) shall, for the jurisdiction
concerned—
(A) provide for ballistics testing, in accord-
ance with criteria set forth by the National In-
tegrated Ballistics Information Network, of all
firearms recovered during criminal investiga-
tions, in order to
(i) identify the types and origins of
the firearms;
(ii) to identify suspects; and
(iii) link multiple crimes involving the
same firearm;
(B) require that all identifying information
relating to firearms recovered during criminal
investigations be promptly submitted to the
Secretary of the Treasury, in order to identify
the types and origins of the firearms and to
identify illegal firearms traffickers; and
(C) provide for the coordination among
Federal, State, and local law enforcement offi-
cials in the identification of violations of Fed-
eral firearm laws, including the establishment
of agreements among Federal, State, and local
law enforcement officials for prosecution of per-
sons arrested for violations of Federal firearm
laws (including sections 922 and 924 of title
18, United States Code, and subsections (d)
and (h) of section 5861 of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986).
(2) AGREEMENTS.—An agreement under para-
graph (1)(C) shall—
(A) take into consideration the compara-
tive available statutory penalties, and compara-
tive forensic, investigative, and prosecutorial re-
sources;
(B) provide for coordination among Fed-
eral, State, and local law enforcement officials,
firearm examiners, technicians, laboratory per-
sonnel, investigators, and prosecutors in the
tracing and ballistics testing of firearms and
the investigation and prosecution of firearms-re-
lated crimes including illegal firearms traf-
ficking; and
(C) require analysis of firearm tracing and
ballistics data in order to establish trends in
firearm-related crime and firearm trafficking.
(c) PARTICIPATING JURISDICTIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Treas-
ury and the Attorney General shall select not fewer
than 10 jurisdictions for participation in the pro-
gram under this section.
(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In selecting jurisdic-
tions under this subsection, the Secretary of the
Treasury and the Attorney General—
(A) shall consider—
(i) the extent to which, as reflected in
the 1998 Uniform Crime Report of the
Federal Bureau of Investigation, there is a
high rate of firearm-related crime in the
jurisdiction, measured either in total or per
capita;
(ii) the extent to which the jurisdic-
tion has experienced an increase in the
total or per capita rate of firearm-related
crime as reported in the 3 most recent an-
nual Uniform Crime Reports of the Fed-
eral Bureau of Investigation; and
(iii) the extent to which State and
local 
law 
enforcement 
agencies 
have
pledged to cooperate with Federal officials
in responding to the illegal acquisition, dis-
tribution, possession, and use of firearms
within the jurisdiction; and
(B) shall give priority to jurisdictions
that—
(i) participate in comprehensive fire-
arm law enforcement strategies, including
programs such as the Youth Crime Gun
Interdiction 
Initiative 
(known 
as
‘‘YCGII’’), Project Achilles, Project Dis-
arm, Project Triggerlock, Project Exile,
and 
Project 
Surefire, 
and 
Operation
Ceasefire; and
(ii) pledge to share ballistics records
with nearby jurisdictions that require bal-
listics testing of firearms recovered during
criminal investigations.
(d) ANNUAL REPORTS AND EVALUATION.—
(1) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this Act and annually
thereafter, the Secretary of the Treasury and 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 re-
port containing the following information for each
jurisdiction participating in the program:
(A) The volume of ballistics records com-
piled in the jurisdiction’s computer system.
(B) The number of inquiries or searches
based on ballistics records made by the jurisdic-
tion and received from outside jurisdictions.
(C) The number of positive firearm identi-
fications through ballistics records that provide
investigative leads in criminal investigations, in-
cluding the percentage of identifications ob-
tained through inquiries with ballistics records
from other jurisdictions.
(D) A summary of the types and origins of
every firearm taken into custody by the juris-
diction.
(E) The number and type of personnel
from the Department of Justice and the Bu-
reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms hired
and assigned to carry out the program.
(F) The number of Federal and State fire-
arm investigations initiated, including the num-
ber of persons arrested on firearm-related
(B) an assessment of the number of fire-
arm identifications made through the matching
of ballistics records;
(C) the interoperability of the jurisdiction’s
ballistics records with the records of nearby ju-
risdictions; and
(D) any recommendations for related legis-
lation.
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is
authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years
2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003, $35,784,000 to carry out
this section, including—
(1) installation of ballistics equipment; and
(2) salaries and expenses for personnel (includ-
ing personnel from the Department of Justice and
the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms).
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