Bill to require license/fingerprints for handgun purchase

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/new-gun-control-demand-photos-fingerprints-background-check-before-handgun-purchase/article/2566117?utm_campaign=Washington Examiner: Washington Secrets PMI&utm_source=Washington Examiner: Washington Secrets PMI - 06/13/15&utm_medium=email

New gun control demand: Photos, fingerprints, background check before handgun purchase
BY PAUL BEDARD | JUNE 12, 2015 | 3:02 PM

House and Senate Democrats have opened a campaign to get states to require a license issued by police, complete with fingerprints and photos, before buying a handgun, even from a friend or family member.

The Handgun Purchaser Licensing Act of 2015, introduced Thursday, would also provide a taxpayer-funded federal grant to implement the program, which proponents say will help to cut down on gun violence and deaths.

"States require licenses to drive a car or even to fish in local rivers, so requiring a license to buy a deadly handgun is a commonsense step that could save countless lives. This legislation will help states develop responsible handgun licensing programs," said sponsor Rep. Chris Van Hollen, who is running for an open Senate seat in Maryland.

While the legislation is not a federal licensing program, it would still be a national project funded by a Justice Department grant that would require purchasers to provide police with photographs, fingerprints, and submit to a background check. The legislation did not indicate a price tag.

It would cover all handgun purchases, in gun stores, at gun shows and among private sellers, including friends and family.

From the fact sheet:
The Handgun Purchaser Licensing Act authorizes a grant program at the Department of Justice to encourage states to establish permit-to-purchase requirements for all handguns, including at gun shows and with private sellers. This grant would help offset the costs associated with the development, implementation, and evaluation of these programs. To be eligible, states must require individuals applying for a license to meet the following criteria:
-- Provide proof they are at least 21 years old and a lawful resident of the United States.
-- Apply for the license at a law enforcement agency within the state.
-- Submit to a background investigation and criminal history check.
-- Submit fingerprints and photographs with their application.
-- Be eligible to purchase a handgun pursuant to the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act.
Besides Van Hollen, there are three Connecticut sponsors, Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, and Rep. Elizabeth Esty.

The four said there is proof that licensing cuts violence and they cited a new study from Johns Hopkins University on a Connecticut law passed 10 years ago.

The Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research found that firearm homicide rates dropped 40 percent after the state adopted a handgun purchaser licensing law.

"Permit-to-purchase requirements for all handguns keep guns out of the hands of criminals and those who would fail a background check, and our bill would help other states develop programs similar to ours here in Connecticut. The time is now for Congress to pass this commonsense gun safety bill, as well as comprehensive federal background checks legislation, to make our streets, our schools, and our communities safer," said Murphy.

Finger printing for handgun purchases had been the norm for many years until we went Shall Issue. Now I don't know as I've yet to buy one without having a CPL, which requires fingerprints to obtain as well as a local and federal background check.

Flint, Detroit and Saginaw are always in the top of the list of most violent cities in America. I really question their research.

Only time I have been fingerprinted and photographed were for NFA purposes and working in a jail, and working at a school.

Never for a handgun.

although thinking back the prints were taken after the purchase, when we had to bring it in for a "safety check" and it may have only been a thumb print for the "green card" (we used to have to carry a little green card(s) everywhere we carried the gun(s))

And a different law, but hoping to accomplish much of the same, and with federal grants going to states that implement it.

http://vanhollen.house.gov/sites/vanhollen.house.gov/files/Handgun Purchaser Licensing Act.pdf

http://www.ammoland.com/2015/06/fed...states-to-require-gun-licenses/#axzz3GKDIisrC

Everyone in our county was supposed to register their dogs a few years ago.

Relatively few did.

Only time it's an issue is if dog bites someone, then they have to prove it was yours anyway, and since it's not registered to you, they almost have to have witnesses or photos or both.