Reps. Norma J. Torres (D-CA), Bradley S. Schneider (D-IL), and Eliot L. Engel (D-NY) introduced a bill Wednesday that would require federal firearms licensees to report the sale of two or more long guns within a five-day period.
This requirement already exists for handguns, but long guns, such as semi-automatic rifles like the AR-15 and the AK-47, are exempt from the rule.
“This bill is a long-overdue update,” Torres said. “Our law enforcement agencies need to know if anyone is stocking up on AR-15s and AK-47s. The multiple sales reporting provision that is already on the books has helped our law enforcement go after handgun trafficking rings across the country. There is simply no reason why we should exempt semi-automatic rifles from that provision.”
The introduction of the Multiple Firearm Sales Reporting Modernization Act comes less than two weeks after a mass shooting in Las Vegas left 59 dead and hundreds more injured. The shooter possessed a large arsenal of firearms, including multiple semi-automatic rifles.
“Too often after tragedies like Las Vegas, we ask why someone didn’t see this coming,” Engel said. “ATF is able to track the sale of handguns, but extending that to all firearms is an important first step to address the gun violence crisis in this country.”