Vice President Kamala Harris
(Photo/The White House)
By Karen Stokes
On a press call, Vice President Kamala Harris announced a major new action by the Biden-Harris administration to reduce gun violence and save lives.
“Today, gun violence is the leading cause of death for the children of America — not car accidents, not some form of cancer — gun violence. And, you know, it — it just — it does not have to be this way.” said Vice President Kamala Harris. “We know how to prevent these tragedies.”
The Justice Department announced it has submitted to the Federal Register the “Engaged in the Business” Final Rule, which makes clear the circumstances in which a person is “engaged in the business” of dealing in firearms and thus required to obtain a federal firearms license, in order to increase compliance with the federal background check requirement for firearm sales by federal firearms licensees.
“Under this regulation, it will not matter if guns are sold on the internet, at a gun show, or at a brick-and-mortar store: if you sell guns predominantly to earn a profit, you must be licensed, and you must conduct background checks,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “This regulation is a historic step in the Justice Department’s fight against gun violence. It will save lives.”
In 2022, President Biden and Vice President Harris worked to enact the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the most significant gun safety law in nearly 30 years. The Vice President continues to lead the Administration’s work to address the epidemic of gun violence while overseeing the first-ever White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention.
“Today, we build on that work by addressing one of the biggest gaps in the federal background check system: the so-called “gun show loophole.” We’ve been talking about it for years,” said Harris.
Unlicensed dealing, however, undermines these public-safety features —which is why Congress has long prohibited engaging in the business of dealing in firearms without the required license.
The Final Rule conforms the ATF regulations to the new BSCA definition and further clarifies the conduct that presumptively requires a license under that revised definition, among other things. The Final Rule also provides clarity as to what licensees must do with their inventory when they go out of business.
The Final Rule goes into effect 30 days after the date of publication in the Federal Register.
On Sept. 8, 2023, the Justice Department published a notice of proposed rulemaking, and during the 90-day open comment period, ATF received nearly 388,000 comments.
“It’s a false choice to suggest that you’re either in favor of the Second Amendment or you want to take everyone’s guns away,” said the Vice President. “I’m in favor of the Second Amendment, and I am in favor of reasonable gun safety laws, for example, background checks.”