Opinion ID: 777092
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Legislative History of the Appropriations Ban

Text: 32 The legislative history of the appropriations ban confirms that Congress did not intend for the appropriations ban to allow individual felons to go straight to district court to seek the restoration of their firearms privileges. As mentioned above, Congress first imposed the appropriations ban in 1992. In the reports to their respective chambers, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees explained why they were preventing ATF from acting on felons' § 925(c) applications. These reports indicate that Congress wanted to suspend § 925(c)'s relief procedure because it was concerned that dangerous felons were regaining their firearms privileges and because it believed that the resources allocated to investigating felons' applications would be better used to fight crime. The House Appropriations Committee noted: Under the relief procedure, ATF officials are required to guess whether a convicted felon ... can be entrusted with a firearm. After ATF agents spend many hours investigating a particular applicant for relief, there is no way to know with any certainty whether the applicant is still a danger to public safety. Needless to say, it is a very difficult task. Thus, officials are now forced to make these decisions knowing that a mistake could have devastating consequences for innocent citizens. 33 Thus, the Committee believes that the $3.75 million and the 40 man-years annually spent investigating and acting upon these applications for relief would be better utilized by ATF in fighting violent crime. Therefore, the Committee has included language which states that no appropriated funds be used to investigate or act upon applications for relief from Federal firearms disabilities. 34 H.R. Rep. 102-618, at 14 (1992). Similarly, the Senate Appropriations Committee stated: 35 Under the relief procedure, ATF officials are required to determine whether a convicted felon, including persons convicted of violent felonies or serious drug offenses, can be entrusted with a firearm. After ATF agents spend many hours investigating a particular applicant they must determine whether or not that applicant is still a danger to public safety. This is a very difficult and subjective task which could have devastating consequences for innocent citizens if the wrong decision is made. The Committee believes that the approximately 40 man-years spent annually to investigate and act upon these investigations and applications would be better utilized to crack down on violent crime. Therefore, the Committee has included language in the bill which prohibits the use of funds for ATF to investigate and act upon applications for relief from Federal firearms disabilities. Under current policy, States have authority to make these determinations and the Committee believes this is properly where the responsibility ought to rest. The Committee expects ATF to redeploy the positions and funding presently supporting firearms disability relief to the Armed Career Criminal program. 36 S. Rep. 102-353, at 19-20 (1992). 37 At the same time, not a single Member of Congress suggested that the appropriations ban would give courts the authority to evaluate § 925(c) applications in the first instance. McHugh, 220 F.3d at 60. Instead, individual Members echoed the Appropriations Committees' concern about restoring felons' firearms privileges. For instance, Senator Chafee said: 38 Dozens of convicted felons who have had their gun rights reinstated have been rearrested on new charges, including attempted murder, robbery, and child molestation. 39 This program [§ 925(c)'s relief provision] just does not make any sense. At a time when gun violence is exacting terrible costs upon our society, it seems absolutely crystal clear to me that the government's time and money would be far better spent trying to keep guns out of the hands of convicted felons, not helping them regain access to firearms. 40 I am pleased to note that the Appropriations Subcommittee 23 has come to this same conclusion, and has stipulated in the bill that no appropriated funds may be used to investigate or act upon applications for relief from Federal firearms disabilities. 41 138 Cong. Rec. S13238 (1992). Likewise, Senator Lautenberg applauded the decision to suspend ATF from acting on § 925(c) applications: Criminals granted relief have later been rearrested for crimes ranging from attempted murder to rape and kidnaping.... ATF agents have better things to do than conduct in-depth investigations on behalf of convicted felons. They should be out on the streets, pursuing criminals. Id. at S13241. 42 Nonetheless, the Bean panel claimed that Congress wanted courts to be able to restore felons' firearms privileges because it did not pass the SAFE bill, Bean, 253 F.3d at 237-39, which Senators Lautenberg and Simon introduced a few months before Congress decided to suspend ATF from acting on § 925(c) applications. 138 Cong. Rec. S2675 (1992). The SAFE bill would have eliminated § 925(c)'s relief provision for individuals and provided that corporations could not seek judicial review if ATF refused to restore their firearms privileges. Id. at S2676. In addition, it would have amended 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(20) to provide that persons convicted of violent felonies cannot possess firearms even if the state in which they were convicted restores their civil rights. 24 43 For several reasons, the SAFE bill's demise does not support the result in Bean. To begin with, the Supreme Court has consistently said that the legislative history of a proposal that does not become law is a particularly dangerous ground upon which to base an interpretation of an enacted law. Pension Benefit Guar. Corp. v. LTV Corp., 496 U.S. 633, 650, 110 S.Ct. 2668, 110 L.Ed.2d 579 (1990). The reason is that [c]ongressional inaction lacks `persuasive significance' because `several equally tenable inferences' may be drawn from such inaction, ` including the inference that the existing legislation already incorporated the offered change. ' Id. (quoting United States v. Wise, 370 U.S. 405, 411, 82 S.Ct. 1354, 8 L.Ed.2d 590 (1962)) (emphasis added). 44 Moreover, the sponsors of the failed SAFE bill successfully pushed for the appropriations ban and viewed the ban's suspension of § 925(c)'s relief provision as a step toward the repeal that they sought. For instance, Senator Lautenberg said of the appropriations ban: I am very pleased that the bill before us includes a provision based on legislation that I introduced with Senator Simon.... I'm hopeful that, before long, we can take the next step, and make the change permanent. 138 Cong. Rec. S13241 (1992). 25 Indeed, the reasons that the House and Senate Appropriations Committees gave for imposing the appropriations ban mirror those offered by Senators Lautenberg and Simon in support of the SAFE bill. Compare 138 Cong. Rec. S2675 (1992) (statement of Sen. Lautenberg) (Surely, someone who has demonstrated his or her willingness to commit a crime of violence should not be entrusted with highly dangerous, deadly weapons.), and id. at S2679 (statement of Sen. Simon) ([T]axpayers are paying millions of dollars each year so that convicted felons may obtain firearms. In an age of increasing violent gun crimes, not to mention an ever widening budget deficit, that just doesn't make sense.), with S.Rep. No. 102-353 at 19 (1992) ([Deciding which felons can safely carry firearms] is a very difficult and subjective task which could have devastating consequences for innocent citizens if the wrong decision is made.), and H.R.Rep. No. 102-618, at 14 (1992) ([T]he Committee believes that the $3.75 million and the 40 man-years annually spent investigating and acting upon these applications for relief would be better utilized by ATF in fighting violent crime.). 45 In addition, Bean overlooked the fact that the appropriations ban is a temporary, compromise version of the portion of the SAFE bill that would have permanently prevented individual felons from regaining their firearms privileges. That Congress chose not to repeal § 925(c)'s relief provision does not mean that it did not intend to suspend it. Further, Bean neglected to mention that the SAFE bill raised federalism concerns that the appropriations ban did not, as it would have eliminated the states' ability to restore felons' firearms privileges. The Senate Appropriations Committee's report indicates that the SAFE bill failed to pass at least partially for this reason. See S.Rep. No. 102-353, at 20 (1992) (Under current policy, States have authority to make these determinations and the Committee believes this is properly where the responsibility ought to rest.). 46 Moreover, the notion that Congress's failure to pass the SAFE bill illustrates that it wanted felons to be able to regain their firearms privileges is inconsistent with the legislative history of subsequent appropriations acts. In 1993, the Senate Appropriations Committee explained why it was continuing the appropriations ban in language virtually identical to that in its 1992 report; the only difference was that it noted that the appropriations ban would no longer apply to corporations. S.Rep. No. 103-106, at 20 (1993). The House Appropriations Committee reiterated the reasons for the ban in 1995: 47 [T]hose who commit serious crimes forfeit many rights and those who commit felonies should not be allowed to have their right to own a firearm restored. We have learned sadly that too many of these felons whose gun ownership rights were restored went on to commit violent crimes with firearms. There is no reason to spend the Government's time or taxpayer's [sic] money to restore a convicted felon's right to own a firearm. 48 H.R.Rep. No. 104-183, at 15 (1995). 49 Shortly after we decided Rice, Senator Simon strongly criticized our decision. He emphasized that Congress wanted to suspend felons' ability to regain their firearms privileges, not to transfer to the courts the responsibility for reviewing § 925(c) applications: 50 This misguided decision [referring to Rice ] could flood the courts with felons seeking the restoration of their gun rights, effectively shifting from ATF to the courts the burden of considering these applications. Instead of wasting taxpayer money and the time of ATF agents[,] which could be much better spent on important law enforcement efforts... we would now be wasting court resources and distracting the courts from consideration of serious criminal cases. 51 Fortunately, [ McGill ] found that congressional intent to prohibit any Federal relief — either through ATF or the courts — is clear.... 52 Given this conflict in the circuit courts, we should clarify our original and sustaining intention. The goal of this provision has always been to prohibit convicted felons from getting their guns back — whether through ATF or the courts. It was never our intention to shift the burden to the courts. 53 . . . . 54 .... It made no sense for ATF to take agents away from their important law enforcement work, and it makes even less sense for the courts, which have no experience or expertise in this area, to be burdened with this unnecessary job. Let me make this point perfectly clear: It was never our intent, nor is it now, for the courts to review a convicted felon's application for firearm privilege restoration. 55 142 Cong. Rec. S10320-21 (1996) (emphases added). In addition, Congress rejected some Members' efforts to undermine the appropriations ban. In 1995, the House Appropriations Committee reinstated the appropriations ban after one of its subcommittees voted to lift it. 141 Cong. Rec. S10572 (1995). The following year, Congress rejected a provision in the House version of the appropriations bill that would have supplemented district courts' jurisdiction so that they could review some § 925(c) applications de novo. 26 56 Since 1996, Congress has not indicated why it retained the appropriations ban. However, there has been no adverse congressional reaction to the holdings in McGill, Burtch, Owen, Saccacio, McHugh, and Mullis that the appropriations ban does not allow district courts to review § 925(c) applications. If Congress wanted district courts to be able to restore felons' firearms privileges, these decisions should have prompted it to give them jurisdiction to do so. 57 In sum, the legislative history of the appropriations ban demonstrates that Congress wanted to suspend felons' ability to regain their firearms privileges under § 925(c). This history refutes the claim that Congress intended to give district courts jurisdiction to review ATF's congressionally mandated inability to restore felons' firearms privileges. Mullis, 230 F.3d at 220-21.