Safe Communities, Safe Schools Act of 2013 - Amends the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (NICS Act), the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (Brady Act), the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, and the federal criminal code to require background checks for all firearm sales, prohibit straw purchases of firearms, and expand the school safety grant program.
Says, in part . . . .
Fix Gun Checks Act of 2013 - Amends the NICS Act to eliminate from the records concerning persons who are prohibited from possessing or receiving a firearm, about which a state must submit estimates to the Attorney General for purposes of the National Instant Criminal Background Check System: (1) a record that identifies a person for whom an indictment has been returned for a crime punishable by imprisonment for a term exceeding one year or who is a fugitive from justice and for which a record of final disposition is not available; and (2) a record that identifies a person who is an unlawful user of, or addicted to, a controlled substance. Directs the Attorney General to establish the applicable time period for the occurrence of events which would disqualify a person from possessing a firearm (currently, within the prior 20 years) in pertinent records.
Amends the Brady Act to prohibit any person who does not hold a federal firearms license from transferring a firearm to any other unlicensed person unless a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer: (1) has first taken possession of the firearm for the purpose of complying with national instant criminal background check requirements; and (2) upon taking possession, complies with all firearms requirements as if transferring the firearm from the licensee's inventory to the unlicensed transferee. Specifies exceptions, including for: (1) bona fide gifts between immediate family members; (2) a transfer from a decedent's estate; (3) a transfer of possession between unlicensed persons in the transferor's home for less than seven days; and (4) certain temporary transfers without the transfer of title in connection with lawful hunting or sporting purposes at a shooting range, at a shooting competition, or while hunting, fishing, or trapping during hunting season.
Makes it unlawful for any person who lawfully possesses or owns a firearm that has been shipped, transported, or possessed in interstate or foreign commerce to fail to report the theft or loss of the firearm to the Attorney General and the appropriate local authorities within 24 hours of discovery.
OK, I made a quick scan and those were the things I noticed too. So why are we celebrating the defeat of an amendment containing universal background checks (national database) to a bill that already has a national database provision in the base bill? Just because it’s a preview of the likely vote total for the actual bill?