Kamala Harris Announces New Rule
On Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris declared a new mandate requiring all firearms dealers to perform background checks, irrespective of the sales location or method.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms is expected to have the rule published in the Federal Register on Thursday, with implementation set for 30 days later, according to Politico.
Vice President Harris emphasized that supporting the Second Amendment and advocating for gun control are not mutually exclusive.
“It’s a false choice to suggest that you’re either in favor of the Second Amendment or you want to take everyone’s guns away,” she said. “I’m in favor of the Second Amendment, and I am in favor of reasonable gun safety laws — for example, background checks.”
Harris highlighted a longstanding issue: “Currently, gun stores are required by law to conduct a background check for every gun sale. But, for decades, many dealers who sell weapons someplace other than the traditional gun store — say, for example, a gun show or a flea market or even through social media — have gotten away without conducting background checks. This is the so-called ‘gun show loophole,’” she explained.
She also mentioned additional gun control measures: "“President Joe Biden and I will continue to call on the United States Congress to have the courage to pass universal background checks, red-flag laws, and an assault weapons ban.”
The proposal of federal red-flag laws, which would allow for the confiscation of firearms if the owner is considered a danger to themselves or others, has been controversial due to concerns over excessive government power.
According to a report by the Rand Institute in January 2023, "Evidence for the effect of assault weapon bans on mass shootings is inconclusive. Evidence that high-capacity magazine bans may decrease mass shootings is limited."
Politico reported that "The new rule, the most sweeping expansion of firearms background checks in decades, will apply to more than 20,000 individuals engaged in unlicensed gun dealing and affect ‘tens and tens of thousands of gun sales’ each year, an administration official told reporters during a call previewing the announcement."
ATF director Steven Dettelbach commented on the importance of the rule: "Today’s Final Rule is about ensuring compliance with an important area of the existing law where we all know, the data show, and we can clearly see that a whole group of folks are openly flouting that law. That leads to not just unfair but, in this case, dangerous consequences."
The rule stems from the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, passed following the Uvalde, Texas shooting, which expanded the definition of licensed gun dealers and introduced enhanced background checks for buyers under 21.