Gun Trafficking Prohibition Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 33 To increase public safety by punishing and deterring firearms trafficking. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 3, 2019 Mr. RUSH introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To increase public safety by punishing and deterring firearms trafficking. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Gun Trafficking Prohi- 4 bition Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 6 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 7 Sec. 1. Short title. Sec. 2. Table of contents. Sec. 3. Anti-straw purchasing and firearms trafficking amendments. Sec. 4. Amendments to section 922(d). Sec. 5. Amendments to section 924(a). Sec. 6. Amendments to section 924(h). Sec. 7. Amendments to section 924(k). VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 33 IH SEC. 3. ANTI-STRAW PURCHASING AND FIREARMS TRAF- 1 FICKING AMENDMENTS. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 44 of title 18, United 3 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol- 4 lowing: 5 ‘‘§ 932. Straw purchasing of firearms 6 ‘‘(a) For purposes of this section— 7 ‘‘(1) the term ‘crime of violence’ has the mean- 8 ing given that term in section 924(c)(3); 9 ‘‘(2) the term ‘drug trafficking crime’ has the 10 meaning given that term in section 924(c)(2); and 11 ‘‘(3) the term ‘purchases’ includes the receipt of 12 any firearm by a person who does not own the fire- 13 arm— 14 ‘‘(A) by way of pledge or pawn as security 15 for the payment or repayment of money; or 16 ‘‘(B) on consignment. 17 ‘‘(b) It shall be unlawful for any person (other than 18 a licensed importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed col- 19 lector, or licensed dealer) to knowingly purchase, or at- 20 tempt or conspire to purchase, any firearm in or otherwise 21 affecting interstate or foreign commerce— 22 ‘‘(1) from a licensed importer, licensed manu- 23 facturer, licensed collector, or licensed dealer for, on 24 behalf of, or at the request or demand of any other 25 person, known or unknown; or 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 33 IH ‘‘(2) from any person who is not a licensed im- 1 porter, licensed manufacturer, licensed collector, or 2 licensed dealer for, on behalf of, or at the request or 3 demand of any other person, known or unknown, 4 knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that 5 such other person— 6 ‘‘(A) is under indictment for, or has been 7 convicted in any court of, a crime punishable by 8 imprisonment for a term exceeding 1 year; 9 ‘‘(B) is a fugitive from justice; 10 ‘‘(C) is an unlawful user of or addicted to 11 any controlled substance (as defined in section 12 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 13 U.S.C. 802)); 14 ‘‘(D) has been adjudicated as a mental de- 15 fective or has been committed to any mental in- 16 stitution; 17 ‘‘(E) is an alien who— 18 ‘‘(i) is illegally or unlawfully in the 19 United States; or 20 ‘‘(ii) except as provided in section 21 922(y)(2), has been admitted to the United 22 States under a nonimmigrant visa (as that 23 term is defined in section 101(a)(26) of 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 33 IH the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 1 U.S.C. 1101(a)(26))); 2 ‘‘(F) has been discharged from the Armed 3 Forces under dishonorable conditions; 4 ‘‘(G) having been a citizen of the United 5 States, has renounced his or her citizenship; 6 ‘‘(H) is subject to a court order that re- 7 strains such person from harassing, stalking, or 8 threatening an intimate partner of such person 9 or child of such intimate partner or person, or 10 engaging in other conduct that would place an 11 intimate partner in reasonable fear of bodily in- 12 jury to the partner or child, except that this 13 subparagraph shall only apply to a court order 14 that— 15 ‘‘(i) was issued after a hearing of 16 which such person received actual notice, 17 and at which such person had the oppor- 18 tunity to participate; and 19 ‘‘(ii)(I) includes a finding that such 20 person represents a credible threat to the 21 physical safety of such intimate partner or 22 child; or 23 ‘‘(II) by its terms explicitly prohibits 24 the use, attempted use, or threatened use 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 33 IH of physical force against such intimate 1 partner or child that would reasonably be 2 expected to cause bodily injury; 3 ‘‘(I) has been convicted in any court of a 4 misdemeanor crime of domestic violence; 5 ‘‘(J) intends to— 6 ‘‘(i) use, carry, possess, or sell or oth- 7 erwise dispose of the firearm or ammuni- 8 tion in furtherance of a crime of violence 9 or drug trafficking crime; or 10 ‘‘(ii) export the firearm or ammuni- 11 tion in violation of law; 12 ‘‘(K) who does not reside in any State; or 13 ‘‘(L) intends to sell or otherwise dispose of 14 the firearm or ammunition to a person de- 15 scribed in any of subparagraphs (A) through 16 (K). 17 ‘‘(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any per- 18 son who violates subsection (b) shall be fined under this 19 title, imprisoned for not more than 15 years, or both. 20 ‘‘(2) If a violation of subsection (b) is committed 21 knowing or with reasonable cause to believe that any fire- 22 arm involved will be used to commit a crime of violence, 23 the person shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment 24 of not more than 25 years. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 33 IH ‘‘(d) Subsection (b)(1) shall not apply to any firearm 1 that is lawfully purchased by a person— 2 ‘‘(1) to be given as a bona fide gift to a recipi- 3 ent who provided no service or tangible thing of 4 value to acquire the firearm, unless the person 5 knows or has reasonable cause to believe such recipi- 6 ent is prohibited by Federal law from possessing, re- 7 ceiving, selling, shipping, transporting, transferring, 8 or otherwise disposing of the firearm; or 9 ‘‘(2) to be given to a bona fide winner of an or- 10 ganized raffle, contest, or auction conducted in ac- 11 cordance with law and sponsored by a national, 12 State, or local organization or association, unless the 13 person knows or has reasonable cause to believe such 14 recipient is prohibited by Federal law from pos- 15 sessing, purchasing, receiving, selling, shipping, 16 transporting, transferring, or otherwise disposing of 17 the firearm. 18 ‘‘§ 933. Trafficking in firearms 19 ‘‘(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to— 20 ‘‘(1) ship, transport, transfer, cause to be 21 transported, or otherwise dispose of 2 or more fire- 22 arms to another person in or otherwise affecting 23 interstate or foreign commerce, if the transferor 24 knows or has reasonable cause to believe that the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 33 IH use, carrying, or possession of a firearm by the 1 transferee would be in violation of, or would result 2 in a violation of, any Federal law punishable by a 3 term of imprisonment exceeding 1 year; 4 ‘‘(2) receive from another person 2 or more 5 firearms in or otherwise affecting interstate or for- 6 eign commerce, if the recipient knows or has reason- 7 able cause to believe that such receipt would be in 8 violation of, or would result in a violation of, any 9 Federal law punishable by a term of imprisonment 10 exceeding 1 year; or 11 ‘‘(3) attempt or conspire to commit the conduct 12 described in paragraph (1) or (2). 13 ‘‘(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any per- 14 son who violates subsection (a) shall be fined under this 15 title, imprisoned for not more than 15 years, or both. 16 ‘‘(2) If a violation of subsection (a) is committed by 17 a person in concert with 5 or more other persons with 18 respect to whom such person occupies a position of orga- 19 nizer, leader, supervisor, or manager, the person shall be 20 sentenced to a term of imprisonment of not more than 21 25 years. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 33 IH ‘‘§ 934. Forfeiture and fines 1 ‘‘(a)(1) Any person convicted of a violation of section 2 932 or 933 shall forfeit to the United States, irrespective 3 of any provision of State law— 4 ‘‘(A) any property constituting, or derived from, 5 any proceeds the person obtained, directly or indi- 6 rectly, as the result of such violation; and 7 ‘‘(B) any of the person’s property used, or in- 8 tended to be used, in any manner or part, to com- 9 mit, or to facilitate the commission of, such viola- 10 tion. 11 ‘‘(2) The court, in imposing sentence on a person con- 12 victed of a violation of section 932 or 933, shall order, 13 in addition to any other sentence imposed pursuant to sec- 14 tion 932 or 933, that the person forfeit to the United 15 States all property described in paragraph (1). 16 ‘‘(b) A defendant who derives profits or other pro- 17 ceeds from an offense under section 932 or 933 may be 18 fined not more than the greater of— 19 ‘‘(1) the fine otherwise authorized by this part; 20 and 21 ‘‘(2) the amount equal to twice the gross profits 22 or other proceeds of the offense under section 932 23 or 933.’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 33 IH (b) TITLE III AUTHORIZATION.—Section 2516(1)(n) 1 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking 2 ‘‘and 924’’ and inserting ‘‘, 924, 932, or 933’’. 3 (c) RACKETEERING AMENDMENT.—Section 4 1961(1)(B) of title 18, United States Code, is amended 5 by inserting ‘‘section 932 (relating to straw purchasing), 6 section 933 (relating to trafficking in firearms),’’ before 7 ‘‘section 1028’’. 8 (d) MONEY LAUNDERING AMENDMENT.—Section 9 1956(c)(7)(D) of title 18, United States Code, is amended 10 by striking ‘‘section 924(n)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 11 924(n), 932, or 933’’. 12 (e) DIRECTIVE TO SENTENCING COMMISSION.—Pur- 13 suant to its authority under section 994 of title 28, United 14 States Code, and in accordance with this section, the 15 United States Sentencing Commission shall review and 16 amend its guidelines and policy statements to ensure that 17 persons convicted of an offense under section 932 or 933 18 of title 18, United States Code, and other offenses applica- 19 ble to the straw purchases and firearms trafficking of fire- 20 arms are subject to increased penalties in comparison to 21 those currently provided by the guidelines and policy state- 22 ments for such straw purchasing and firearms trafficking 23 offenses. The Commission shall also review and amend its 24 guidelines and policy statements to reflect the intent of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 33 IH Congress that a person convicted of an offense under sec- 1 tion 932 or 933 of title 18, United States Code, who is 2 affiliated with a gang, cartel, organized crime ring, or 3 other such enterprise should be subject to higher penalties 4 than an otherwise unaffiliated individual. 5 (f) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 6 The table of sections of chapter 44 of title 18, United 7 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol- 8 lowing: 9 ‘‘932. Straw purchasing of firearms. ‘‘933. Trafficking in firearms. ‘‘934. Forfeiture and fines.’’. SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO SECTION 922(d). 10 Section 922(d) of title 18, United States Code, is 11 amended— 12 (1) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 13 end; 14 (2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period at 15 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 16 (3) by striking the matter following paragraph 17 (9) and inserting the following: 18 ‘‘(10) intends to sell or otherwise dispose of the 19 firearm or ammunition to a person described in any 20 of paragraphs (1) through (9); or 21 ‘‘(11) intends to sell or otherwise dispose of the 22 firearm or ammunition in furtherance of a crime of 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 33 IH violence or drug trafficking offense or to export the 1 firearm or ammunition in violation of law. 2 This subsection shall not apply with respect to the sale 3 or disposition of a firearm or ammunition to a licensed 4 importer, licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer, or li- 5 censed collector who pursuant to subsection (b) of section 6 925 is not precluded from dealing in firearms or ammuni- 7 tion, or to a person who has been granted relief from dis- 8 abilities pursuant to subsection (c) of section 925.’’. 9 SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO SECTION 924(a). 10 Section 924(a) of title 18, United States Code, is 11 amended— 12 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘(d), (g),’’; 13 and 14 (2) by adding at the end the following: 15 ‘‘(8) Whoever knowingly violates subsection (d) or (g) 16 of section 922 shall be fined under this title, imprisoned 17 not more than 15 years, or both.’’. 18 SEC. 6. AMENDMENTS TO SECTION 924(h). 19 Section 924 of title 18, United States Code, is 20 amended by striking subsection (h) and inserting the fol- 21 lowing: 22 ‘‘(h)(1) Whoever knowingly receives or transfers a 23 firearm or ammunition, or attempts or conspires to do so, 24 knowing or having reasonable cause to believe that such 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:52 Jan 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H33.IH H33 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 33 IH firearm or ammunition will be used to commit a crime of 1 violence (as defined in subsection (c)(3)), a drug traf- 2 ficking crime (as defined in subsection (c)(2)), or a crime 3 under the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2751 et 4 seq.), the International Emergency Economic Powers Act 5 (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin 6 Designation Act (21 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.), or section 7 212(a)(2)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(C)) shall be imprisoned not more than 9 25 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both. 10 ‘‘(2) [Text truncated for display. 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