The Blagojevich/Lautenberg Bill Equals Real Gun Show Reform

The Blagojevich/Lautenberg gun show proposal (H.R. 920 and S. 443) would institute real gun show reform and close the gun show loophole that allows gun sales by private "hobbyists" without a background check. The bill would:

• Require gun show promoters to register with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) and notify ATF of the date and location of each show they sponsor. This will help ATF keep track of the more than 4,000 guns shows that occur in America every year.

• Require that gun show promoters verify the identity of each vendor participating in the show.

• Require that all firearm sales at gun shows be transacted by a federally licensed firearms dealer. The licensed dealer would be required to conduct a background check of the purchaser and keep records of the gun sales carried out at the gun show. Today, sales by private "hobbyists"�a large percentage of firearm sales at gun shows�are exempt from the background check required by the Brady Law.

• Require that promoters notify gun show attendees and vendors of the necessity of ensuring that all gun sales at gun shows comply with the background check requirement.

• Require that licensed dealers keep records of all firearm transactions they facilitate at gun shows. The dealers would then submit to ATF information regarding the guns transferred. That information would specifically not include information regarding the buyer or seller. This information would allow ATF to know when a gun seized at a crime scene came from a gun show. Currently, it is extremely difficult for ATF to trace crime guns sold at gun shows.

• Enforce these requirements with criminal penalties for knowing violations with the option of suspension or revocation of promoters' registration.