U.S. Representatives Jake Auchincloss (D-MA-04), Jim McGovern (D-MA-02), Stephen Lynch (D-MA-08), Bill Keating (D-MA-09), Seth Moulton (D-MA-06), Lori Trahan (D-MA-03), and U.S. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Edward J. Markey (D-MA) sent a letter to the Department of Justice and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) requesting that ATF ramp up its work to mitigate the influx of illegal firearms from other states into Massachusetts.
The majority of guns recovered from crimes in Massachusetts are trafficked from other states with weaker gun laws. Straw purchasers, those who buy guns on behalf of people who cannot legally purchase guns, and unlicensed individuals often purchase guns in states with weaker gun laws and transport them via highways that have become popular gun trafficking corridors. This includes the notorious "Iron Pipeline" along Interstate 95. The guns are then resold for profit in states with tighter restrictions on gun purchases, undermining the efficacy of strong gun laws in states like Massachusetts.
"While Massachusetts suffers one of the highest rates of interstate gun trafficking, this problem is not unique to the Commonwealth. Nationwide, almost one-third of guns recovered in crimes were trafficked from other states," wrote the lawmakers.
The lawmakers made five key recommendations to the ATF:
- Strong implementation of a newly finalized rule that will require more sellers to obtain federal licenses and comply with federal safety requirements that help identify potential traffickers. These requirements include conducting background checks, maintaining inventory records, and reporting when customers purchase two or more handguns within five consecutive business days.
- Improve inspections of high-risk and noncompliant dealers. The ATF should conduct more frequent follow-up inspections of dealers that sell guns to straw purchasers and those that ignore other indications of trafficking.
- Expand reporting requirements for multiple sales of rifles, in addition to revolvers and pistols, and require ATF to keep those reports for at least five years, up from the current requirement of two years.
- Increase public access to gun trafficking data to allow researchers, journalists, and policymakers to have access to vital data on interstate gun trafficking and the sources of crime guns.
- Ensure more consistent crime gun tracing and increase technical assistance to train local law enforcement on how to do so.
The lawmakers requested an update on ATF's efforts to stem the flow of weapons across state lines by November 7, 2024.
Congressman Jake Auchincloss is a member of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, and a national leader for gun violence prevention. Rep. Auchincloss has worked closely with the Biden Administration to ensure that ATF and DOJ are closing loopholes on background checks in existing legislation and cracking down on ghost guns. He has also cosponsored multiple pieces of anti-gun trafficking legislation, including the Trafficking Reduction and Criminal Enforcement (TRACE) Act.
U.S. Representative Jake Auchincloss, MA Lawmakers Urge DOJ, ATF To Crack Down on Interstate Gun Trafficking As Gun Violence Surges
