Gun Violence Prevention

Every single day, over 120 people in the United States are killed with guns, nearly twice as many are shot and wounded, and countless others are impacted by senseless acts of gun violence. Firearms are the leading cause of death for American children and teens. 

Too many families and communities know the pain of losing a loved one to gun violence. We need common sense public safety laws to reduce gun violence and stop this bloodshed. 

We made historic progress when the Biden-Harris Administration and a Democratic Congress enacted the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. I was proud to vote to support this historic law, which was the first major gun violence prevention package in nearly three decades. This law not only supports the implementation of red flag laws and enhances background checks, it also includes historic investments in mental health care across the country. While we must keep pushing to keep our communities safe from gun violence, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act includes critical provisions advanced by House Democrats that will help save lives. 

In 2022, I voted with my colleagues in the Democratic-led House of Representatives to pass legislation to reinstate the Assault Weapons Ban and get deadly weapons of war off our streets. This bill prohibited the sale, manufacture, transfer or possession of semiautomatic assault weapons – as well as high-capacity magazines – and required safe storage for lawfully owned assault weapons already in our communities. In the end, unfortunately, this legislation did not receive support from Senate Republicans. 

I also have supported efforts to pass common sense legislation to keep assault weapons out of the hands of teenagers by requiring individuals to be 21-years-old before they can buy semi-automatic centerfire rifles, just as they have to be 21-years-old to purchase handguns. I am also proud to support efforts to put the Closing the Bump Stock Loophole Act to a vote before the House of Representatives. The bill would ban bump stocks, which can generate automatic fire with a single trigger pull, and reinstate a previous ban on the devices that the Supreme Court invalidated.  

We have much more work to do to prevent gun violence. It’s beyond time that we ban assault weapons and pass additional common sense measures to save lives. 

I’ll keep fighting for a future free of gun violence.