Everytown Applauds Senators Pat Toomey and Chris Coons for Introducing Bipartisan Legislation That Would Notify State Law Enforcement When Criminals Try to Purchase Guns

WASHINGTON – Everytown for Gun Safety released the following statement today applauding Senators Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Chris Coons (D-DE) for reintroducing the NICS Denial Notification Act, legislation that will require state law enforcement officials to be notified each time a person who is not allowed to have guns tries to buy a firearm and fails the background check. The bipartisan legislation would provide state law enforcement with the information they need to intervene and stop unlawful purchasers before they can get a gun another way. Earlier this month, a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House reintroduced the companion bill, and this common sense proposal was also included in the bipartisan Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act expected to be voted on in the House next week.

“When someone who is legally barred from owning a firearm tries to buy a gun, it’s both a warning sign and a crime — but in many states, they can walk out of the store scot-free because state law enforcement is never informed of the failed check,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. “We applaud Senators Toomey and Coons for introducing this bipartisan bill to ensure state law enforcement is notified when a dangerous person is looking to get armed.”