Connecticut’s Congressional delegates have been celebrating the Biden administration’s announcement last week of a ruling allowing them to close the gun-show loophole in an effort to control gun violence.
The new rule was published in the Federal Register today and will go into effect May 20.
The loophole – also known as the private sale exemption – has allowed private gun sellers to transact firearms without background checks for decades. Gun safety advocates have been campaigning for universal background checks since the 1990s.
Gun rights advocates and advocacy groups are opposing the change and are vowing to challenge it in court.
Last week, the Biden administration issued its interpretation of the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) requiring anyone who sells guns for profit to be licensed and subject to a background check. The ruling, by the U.S. Department of Justice, amends the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) regulations, expanding background checks on gun sales outside of brick-and-mortar gun stores.
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy released a statement on Friday applauding the Biden administration, saying the new rule is going to save lives.
“We are going to stop lots of violent criminals, lots of people with serious mental illness, from being able to get guns,” Murphy said.
U.S. Rep. John Larson, D-1st District, offered similar remarks via email.
“The Biden Administration’s rule will save lives by closing the gun show loophole, which will ensure more firearms sales are subject to background checks,” Larson said. “I supported the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, championed by our very own Senator Chris Murphy, because it takes critical steps like these to protect our communities from gun violence.”
Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to reporters on a call on Thursday.
“Every year, thousands of unlicensed gun dealers sell tens of thousands of guns without a single background check, including to buyers who, if they had been required to pass a background check, would have failed – for example, domestic abusers, violent felons, and even children,” Harris said.
Both Harris and President Joe Biden say this gap in the system has allowed for countless crimes including the 1999 Columbine shooting, which was carried out with a gun purchased under the gun-show loophole.
The finalized ruling will amend the ATFs’ regulations regarding firearm dealers.
The language originally defined those engaged in the business of selling firearms as “a person who devotes time, attention, and labor to dealing in firearms as a regular course of trade or business with the principal objective of livelihood and profit through the repetitive purchase and resale of firearms.”
The new interpretation of the rule strikes the language “with the principal objective of livelihood and profit” and replaces it with “to predominantly earn a profit.”
Murphy highlighted what he sees as the problem with the previous interpretation.
“The problem is we require background checks to be done in brick-and-mortar gun stores. But there are all sorts of part-time sellers that are selling guns for profit, regularly online and at gun shows that aren’t doing background checks,” said Murphy in a video posted to his Facebook page.
“This new rule made possible by the 2022 gun bill is going to mean that tens of thousands of gun sales that right now have no background checks are going to have background checks applied,” Murphy said.
According to the ATF, the ruling does not apply “to a person who makes occasional sales, exchanges, or purchases of firearms for the enhancement of a personal collection or for a hobby, or who sells all or part of the person’s personal collection of firearms.”
However, organizations like the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) claim that the Department of Justice does not have the authority to change the Gun Control Act (GCA), which Congress passed in 1968.
According to public comments by Lawrence G. Keane, Assistant Secretary and Senior Vice President & General Counsel at NSSF, the rule exceeds the government’s “limited authority” to adopt regulations.
“ATF has no authority to ‘improve’ on what Congress enacted or to create new crimes not enacted by Congress. An agency may not re-write statutory terms or fill in what the agency considers to be ‘gaps’ or ‘loopholes’ in the statute,” Keane said.
The NSSF claims that what the new rule lists as a “personal collection” should not only include personal firearms that “a person accumulates for study, comparison, exhibition, or for a hobby,” but also for self defense, as “that’s a predominant reason to acquire firearms,” Keane said.
Connecticut prohibits the transfer of any firearm at a gun show until a background check is requested for the prospective transferee. They must also receive an authorization number for the transfer from the state Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection.
