Prosecuting Gun Crimes Saves Lives Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 5836 To direct the Attorney General to prioritize the investigation and prosecution of Federal firearms offenses, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 10, 2020 Mrs. WAGNER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To direct the Attorney General to prioritize the investigation and prosecution of Federal firearms offenses, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Prosecuting Gun 4 Crimes Saves Lives Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 The Congress finds as follows: 7 (1) Promoting public safety, addressing gun- 8 based homicides, and enforcing Federal firearms 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 5836 IH laws are among the highest priorities of the Con- 1 gress. 2 (2) Point-of-sale background checks can reduce 3 the risk of gun-based homicides by preventing crimi- 4 nals and prohibited persons from purchasing fire- 5 arms while protecting access for law-abiding citizens. 6 (3) Under the Gun Control Act of 1968, cat- 7 egories of persons who may pose a threat to public 8 safety, including violent felons, fugitives from jus- 9 tice, and persons convicted of domestic violence 10 crimes, are prohibited from shipping, transporting, 11 receiving, or possessing firearms or ammunition. 12 (4) Thousands of prohibited persons illegally at- 13 tempt to purchase firearms every year. In 2017, the 14 FBI’s NICS Section referred 112,090 denied trans- 15 actions to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms 16 and Explosives (ATF). Of these NICS denials, only 17 12, or 0.09 percent, were prosecuted in 2017. 18 (5) On March 12, 2018, former Attorney Gen- 19 eral Jeff Sessions issued a memo directing Depart- 20 ment of Justice prosecutors to prioritize ‘‘vigorous 21 and appropriate’’ prosecution of cases involving false 22 statements on Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Ex- 23 plosives Form 4473. The memo stated that ‘‘Crimi- 24 nals and other prohibited persons who attempt to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 5836 IH thwart the background check process by lying on the 1 required forms threaten to undermine this important 2 crime prevention tool’’ and that ‘‘we must vigilantly 3 protect the integrity of the background system 4 through appropriate prosecution of those who at- 5 tempt to circumvent the law’’. The Department of 6 Justice’s efforts to reclaim the integrity of the back- 7 ground check system yielded a 23-percent increase 8 in the number of defendants charged with unlawful 9 possession of a firearm in the 3 months following 10 issuance of the memo. 11 (6) On November 13, 2019, Attorney General 12 William Barr announced the launch of a new initia- 13 tive, Project Guardian, to reduce gun-based homi- 14 cides by investigating, prosecuting, and preventing 15 firearm crimes. Project Guardian will address gun- 16 based homicides by encouraging coordinated pros- 17 ecution efforts, enforcement of the background check 18 system, improved information-sharing, response to 19 mental health denials, and crime gun intelligence co- 20 ordination. 21 (7) Congress must ensure Federal, State, and 22 local entities tasked with preventing prohibited indi- 23 viduals from purchasing firearms, recovering fire- 24 arms from prohibited individuals, and investigating 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 5836 IH and prosecuting lying and buying and lying and try- 1 ing cases have sufficient information and resources 2 to carry out their missions and promote public safe- 3 ty. 4 (8) Congress urges the Attorney General to 5 prioritize the investigation and prosecution of Fed- 6 eral firearm offenses to protect Americans and pre- 7 vent and deter the illegal purchase and possession of 8 firearms. 9 SEC. 3. INFORMATION-SHARING WITH STATE FUSION CEN- 10 TERS. 11 Not later than 60 days after the date of the enact- 12 ment of this Act, the Attorney General may direct the Bu- 13 reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to reg- 14 ularly provide to State and local law enforcement agencies, 15 including through State law enforcement fusion centers 16 (as defined in section 210A(j)(1) of the Homeland Secu- 17 rity Act of 2002) a report listing individuals for whom 18 the National Instant Criminal Background Check System 19 has issued firearm transfer denials, including the basis for 20 the denial, with the purpose of equipping law enforcement 21 with the information they need to prevent persons from 22 illegally purchasing, receiving, or possessing firearms. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 5836 IH SEC. 4. POINT OF CONTACT AND PARTIAL POINT OF CON- 1 TACT STATE GRANTS TO INCREASE INVES- 2 TIGATIONS AND PROSECUTIONS. 3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 4 date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 5 the Attorney General may make grants to eligible States 6 to investigate firearm transfer denials and increase inves- 7 tigations and prosecutions of persons who illegally pur- 8 chase, possess, or receive a firearm, or illegally attempt 9 to purchase, possess, or receive a firearm. 10 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—An eligible State is any State that 11 is a point of contact State or partial point of contact State 12 for the national instant criminal background check sys- 13 tem. 14 (c) APPLICATION.—To receive a grant under this sec- 15 tion, a State shall submit to the Attorney General an ap- 16 plication at such time, in such manner, and containing 17 such information as the Attorney General may reasonably 18 require. 19 (d) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this sec- 20 tion, the Attorney General may give priority to each eligi- 21 ble State that— 22 (1) establishes a task force that includes enti- 23 ties such as State and local law enforcement agen- 24 cies, State and local prosecutors, agencies con- 25 ducting background checks, and representatives 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 5836 IH from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and 1 Explosives; and 2 (2) certifies to the Attorney General that the 3 State is committed to investigating and prosecuting 4 persons who illegally purchase, possess, or receive 5 firearms or illegally attempt to purchase, possess, or 6 receive firearms. 7 (e) USE OF FUNDS.—A State that receives a grant 8 under this section shall use grant funds to coordinate and 9 execute investigations and prosecutions of persons who il- 10 legally purchase, possess, or receive a firearm, or illegally 11 attempt such purchase, possession, or receipt, including 12 the illegal purchase or possession of a firearm based on 13 a prior felony or any relevant misdemeanor convictions. 14 (f) EVALUATION.—Each State that receives a grant 15 under this section shall submit to the Attorney General, 16 not later than 1 year after receipt of such grant, an eval- 17 uation in such form and containing such information as 18 the Attorney General may reasonably require. 19 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF FUNDING.—There is author- 20 ized to be appropriated to carry out this section not more 21 than $7,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 22 2025. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 5836 IH SEC. 5. INCREASING FEDERAL PROSECUTION OF GUN VIO- 1 LENCE. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 3 date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General 4 shall establish in each jurisdiction described in subsection 5 (c) a program that meets the requirements of subsection 6 (b), which shall be known as the ‘‘Prosecute Gun Crimes 7 Program’’. 8 (b) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—Each program estab- 9 lished under subsection (a) shall, for the jurisdiction con- 10 cerned— 11 (1) require that the United States attorney des- 12 ignate not less than 1 assistant United States attor- 13 neys to prosecute violations of Federal firearms 14 laws; 15 (2) provide for coordination with State and 16 local law enforcement officials in the identification of 17 violations of Federal firearms laws; 18 (3) provide for the establishment of agreements 19 with State and local law enforcement officials for the 20 referral to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms 21 and Explosives and the United States attorney for 22 the district in which the jurisdiction is located for 23 prosecution of persons arrested for violations of sec- 24 tion 922 or 924 of title 18, United States Code, or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 5836 IH section 5861 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 1 relating to firearms; 2 (4) ensure that each person so referred be 3 charged with a violation of the most serious Federal 4 firearm offense consistent with the act committed, 5 while preserving prosecutorial discretion; 6 (5) provide for the hiring of agents for the Bu- 7 reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives 8 to investigate violations of the provisions of law 9 specified in paragraph (3); and 10 (6) provide for the establishment of multijuris- 11 dictional task forces, coordinated by the Executive 12 Office of the United States attorneys, to investigate 13 and prosecute illegal straw purchasing rings that 14 purchase firearms in one jurisdiction and transfer 15 them in another. 16 (c) COVERED JURISDICTIONS.— 17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 18 the jurisdictions described in this subsection are— 19 (A) the 15 cities or jurisdictions within the 20 50 States with a population equal to or greater 21 than 100,000 persons that had the highest per 22 capita rate of gun-based homicides according to 23 the uniform crime report of the Federal Bureau 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 5836 IH of Investigation for the most recent year avail- 1 able; and 2 (B) the 3 tribal jurisdictions that have the 3 highest gun-based homicide crime rates, as de- 4 termined by the Attorney General. 5 (d) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after 6 the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually there- 7 after, the Attorney General shall submit to the Committee 8 on the Judiciary of the Senate and the Committee on the 9 Judiciary of the House of Representatives a report con- 10 taining the following information: 11 (1) The number of individuals indicted for such 12 violations of Federal firearms laws during that year. 13 (2) The increase or decrease in the number of 14 individuals indicted for such violations of Federal 15 firearms laws during that year under a program es- 16 tablished under this section when compared with the 17 year preceding that year. 18 (3) To the extent the information is available, 19 the average length of the sentences of imprisonment 20 of the individuals convicted of violations of Federal 21 firearms laws under such a program. 22 (4) The number of multijurisdictional task 23 forces established and the number of individuals ar- 24 rested, indicted, convicted or acquitted of charges for 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 5836 IH violations of the crimes specified in subsection 1 (b)(3). 2 (e) LIMITATIONS ON AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO- 3 PRIATIONS.— 4 (1) IN GENERAL.—For the salaries and ex- 5 penses of assistant United States attorneys and Bu- 6 reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives 7 agents participating in the program established 8 under this section, there are authorized to be appro- 9 priated $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021, 10 2022, and 2023. 11 (2) USE OF FUNDS.— 12 (A) ASSISTANT UNITED STATES ATTOR- 13 NEYS.—The assistant United States attorneys 14 hired using amounts made available under 15 paragraph (1) of this subsection shall prosecute 16 violations of Federal firearms laws specified in 17 subsection (b)(3). 18 (B) ATF AGENTS.—The Bureau of Alco- 19 hol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents 20 hired using amounts made available under 21 paragraph (1) of this subsection shall, to the 22 maximum extent practicable, concentrate their 23 investigations on violations of Federal firearms 24 laws specified in subsection (b)(3). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 5836 IH SEC. 6. PROSECUTION OF FELONS WHO ATTEMPT TO ILLE- 1 GALLY PURCHASE FIREARMS. 2 (a) TASK FORCE.— 3 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 4 the Department of Justice a task force, which shall 5 be known as the Felon Firearm Task Force (re- 6 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘Task Force’’), to 7 strengthen the efforts of the Department of Justice 8 to investigate and prosecute cases of convicted felons 9 who illegally attempt to purchase a firearm. 10 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—The members of the Task 11 Force shall be— 12 (A) the Deputy Attorney General, who 13 shall serve as the Chairperson of the Task 14 Force; 15 (B) the Assistant Attorney General for the 16 Criminal Division; 17 (C) the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, 18 Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; 19 (D) the Director of the Federal Bureau of 20 Investigation; and 21 (E) such other officers or employees of the 22 Department of Justice as the Attorney General 23 may designate. 24 (3) DUTIES.—The Task Force shall provide— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:49 Feb 14, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5836.IH H5836 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 5836 IH (A) direction for the investigation and 1 prosecution of cases of convicted felons at- 2 tempting to illegally purchase a firearm; and 3 (B) recommendations to the Attorney Gen- 4 eral relating to— 5 (i) the allocation and reallocation of 6 resources of the Department of Justice for 7 investigation and prosecution of such 8 cases; 9 (ii) e [Text truncated for display. 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