SCHUMER: FEDERAL DATABASE THAT HELPS KEEP GUNS OUT OF THE HANDS OF THE MENTALLY ILL IS THREATENED BY HOUSE GOP CUTS; IN WAKE OF TUCSON SHOOTING, PROGRAM IS NEEDED NOW MORE THAN EVER BEFORE
National Instant Criminal Background Check System Helps Prevent Mentally Ill Individuals, Like Jared Loughner, From Buying Weapons
Schumer Legislation Strengthened System By Helping Feds and States Share Information; House Republicans Now Threaten To Cut All Funding For The Program
Schumer: The Recent Shooting In Tucson Is A Wake Up Call That We Need To Do Everything We Can To Keep Guns Out of the Hands of the Mentally Ill
Last week, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer called on the House Appropriations committee to halt its planned cuts for the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) that helps keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill. The system, set up as part of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007, authorized funds for states to improve their criminal record sharing systems and get their records into NICS so that pre-purchase background checks will better catch people who are prohibited from purchasing firearms. However, under current House Appropriations committee proposals to roll back all funding to 2008 levels, funding for this legislation would be eliminated entirely and would hamper the ability of states and the federal government to ensure that mentally ill individuals, like Jared Loughner, are not legally allowed to purchase a firearm. In a letter to Appropriations Chairman Harold Rogers and Ranking Committee Member Norm Dicks, Schumer urged the committee to continue funding the NICS Improvement Act to help prevent firearms from falling into the hands of the mentally disturbed in the future.
"The shooting in Tucson showed how easy it is for a mentally deranged person to get a gun and the need for greater information sharing to make sure it never happens again," said Schumer. "By gutting funding for our only program that helps keep guns out of the hands of people like Jared Loughner and the Virginia Tech shooter, we would take a major step backwards in our efforts to keep guns out of the hands of deranged individuals."
The shooting near Tucson, Arizona, which claimed the lives of six individuals and wounded 14 others, underscores the danger of firearms falling into hands of the mentally disturbed. The NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 works to prevent dangerous individuals like Jared Loughner from acquiring firearms. The Act, however, currently funded at $325 million (a year?), would be completely defunded by the cuts being offered by the House GOP.
When a person attempts to purchase a firearm, a background check is run through the NICS system. A NICS call center representative (or automated system) runs a check of several databases to see if the purchaser has a record prohibiting him or her from buying a gun under federal law. The majority of potential gun buyers are either approved or denied almost instantly. But if the computer search is unable to reach a final determination, a NICS representative will conduct a manual search for missing information that will allow NICS to make a final determination. In such a situation, the NICS representative must attempt to get the missing information by calling state and local courthouses, judges, clerks, or even law enforcement officers to get the information. If the NICS representative cannot get an answer in three days, the gun dealer automatically has permission to sell the gun to the buyer.
A criminal background check is only as good as the records that the states provide to the system. Recent reports point to the success of NICS funding helping states share criminal data and keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill. Before passage of this legislation in 2007, millions of criminal and mental health records were inaccessible to the NICS system, mostly because state and local governments lacked the money to submit the records. After passage of this legislation, significant incentives were provided to states that have good reporting records. States who comply are required to share information--such as an individual's relevant, disqualifying history of mental illness--with the FBI. The law also requires federal agencies like the Department of Homeland Security to make their records available to the NICS database to ensure timely and thorough background checks of those who purchase guns. The bill also required states to set up procedures whereby a person who previously had been deemed mentally ill can petition to regain the right to own a firearm.
A copy of Schumer's letter to Representatives Rogers and Dicks is below.
February 10, 2011
The Honorable Harold Rogers
Chairman
U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Appropriations, H-307
Washington, DC 20510
The Honorable Norm Dicks
Ranking Member
U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Appropriations, 1016 LHOB
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Dicks:
As you finalize language for the coming continuing resolution, I write respectfully requesting funding be included to continue the implementation of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (Public Law No. 110-180).
Current law precludes certain individuals, including felons, those adjudicated as "mental defective," illegal aliens, and those under restraining orders, from purchasing or possessing guns. On January 8, 2008, the President signed into law HR 2640, the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007. This legislation authorized funds for states and Indian tribal governments to establish and upgrade information and identification technologies for determining firearms eligibility and to assist the state courts with the improvement of their criminal record sharing systems. In order to ensure that those individuals prohibited from purchasing or possessing guns are not inadvertently allowed to obtain firearms, it is imperative that the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) have up-to-date records.
Unfortunately, not all states have provided the necessary records to NICS, and many states do not have the necessary funding to automate criminal history and mental health records. As stated in the findings of H. R. 2640, nearly 21 million criminal records are not accessible by NICS, due in part to a lack of computerized information. Moreover, millions of criminal records are missing critical data, due to processing backlogs. Recent reports however, point to the success of NICS funding in closing this dangerous gap.
The shooting near Tucson, Arizona, which has claimed the lives of six individuals and wounded 14 others, underscores the danger of firearms falling into hands of the mentally disturbed. The NICS system is critical in preventing dangerous individuals like Jared Loughner from acquiring firearms. Therefore, I urge you to include funding for NICS your continuing resolution. While the NICS Improvements Amendments Act is authorized at $325 million, I hope that at a minimum you will continue funding the implementation of this act at its current levels.
Thank you for your consideration of this request. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Marco De León on Senator Schumer's staff, at 4-6542.
Sincerely,
Charles E. Schumer
United States Senator