MAYORS AGAINST ILLEGAL GUNS HAILS PASSAGE OF U.S. CONFERENCE OF MAYORS’ RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF FIGHT AGAINST ILLEGAL GUNS

The bi-partisan coalition of Mayors Against Illegal Guns today announced and praised the passage of a resolution by the U.S. Conference of Mayors in support of efforts to fight illegal guns. The resolution calls on Congress to repeal the so-called Tiahrt Amendment that restricts access to crucial gun trace data and also calls on Congress to pass legislation to achieve the Coalition's four common sense goals: closing the gun show loophole, requiring background checks for gun store employees, ending gun dealer fire sales and preventing terrorism suspects from buying guns. The common sense federal legislative agenda was launched in April by the over 320 members of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, a coalition co-chaired by New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas M. Menino. The resolution was approved at the U.S. Conference of Mayors Annual Meeting in Miami and is now the policy of the group. The U.S. Conference of Mayors is a nonpartisan organization that represents mayors from all fifty states.

"Now the U.S. Conference of Mayors has joined our 320-member coalition to call on Congress to pass common sense legislation that will help to keep guns out of the hands of criminals and terrorists," said Mayor Bloomberg. "There are now bills making their way through Congress that address each of the coalition's four common sense proposals, and we will continue working with Mayors and others to build support for their passage."

"Mayors from across the nation have endorsed and embraced the federal agenda of Mayors Against Illegal Guns," said Mayor Menino. "While the US Conference of Mayors represents many voices and points of view, we all speak the same language when it comes to illegal guns. Now is the time for both parties in Congress to take action and pass these proposals to make our communities safer. Our citizens depend on us to protect our cities; I look forward to working with America's mayors to do all we can to get illegal guns off of our streets."

"When illegal guns and assault weapons flooded our streets, it was Mayor Bloomberg, Mayor Menino and the coalition of Mayors Against Illegal Guns who raised their voice against violence in our cities," said Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, the Vice President of the US Conference of Mayors and the host of today's meeting. "Today, the entire US Conference of Mayors joins together with the coalition to advocate for common sense policies that will help keep neighborhoods across America safe."

"The Conference of Mayors appreciates the work of Mayors Against Illegal Guns to spotlight the need for common sense gun safety measures," said Trenton Mayor Douglas H. Palmer, the President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. "In my city, half of the guns confiscated come from Pennsylvania - and most of the rest from southern states. The resolution passed this morning recognizes the national scope of the gun show loophole and other flaws that have led to an 'iron pipeline' serving criminals instead of public safety. Today's important action enhances a U.S. Conference of Mayors' gun safety policy developed over 40 years and will help shape our legislative agenda in the year ahead."

The text of the resolution, as adopted by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, appears below:

Resolution No. 39

Submitted By:

The Honorable Michael Bloomberg
Mayor of New York

The Honorable Antonio R. Villaraigosa
Mayor of Los Angeles

The Honorable Thomas M. Menino
Mayor of Boston

The Honorable John W. Hickenlooper
Mayor of Denver

The Honorable Jerry Sanders
Mayor of San Diego

The Honorable Byron W. Brown
Mayor of Buffalo

The Honorable R.T. Rybak
Mayor of Minneapolis

The Honorable David N. Cicilline
Mayor of Providence

The Honorable Richard M. Daley
Mayor of Chicago

The Honorable Cory Booker
Mayor of Newark

The Honorable Greg Nickels
Mayor of Seattle

The Honorable Robert Duffy
Mayor of Rochester

The Honorable Manuel Diaz
Mayor of Miami

The Honorable Mark Mallory
Mayor of Cincinnati

The Honorable Francis Slay
Mayor of St. Louis

COMMON SENSE MEASURES IN SUPPORT OF EFFORTS TO FIGHT ILLEGAL GUNS

1. WHEREAS, a loophole (i.e. the gun show loophole) in the law enables criminals to avoid background checks if they buy guns at gun shows; and
   
   
2. WHEREAS, gun dealers who are shut down by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) for selling guns illegally are currently permitted to sell off their remaining inventory without conducting background checks; and
   
   
3. WHEREAS, gun dealers are currently not required to perform background checks on their employees; and
   
   
4. WHEREAS, six years after 9/11, suspects on the terror watch list are able to pass background checks and purchase guns; and
   
   
5. WHEREAS, the Tiahrt Amendments, which have been inserted into the Department of Justice appropriations bill each year since FY 2003, place unnecessarily broad restrictions on access to and use of gun trace data that is compiled by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and
   
   
6. WHEREAS, on April 25, 2006 a bipartisan group of fifteen Mayors met in New York City at the Mayor's Summit on Illegal Guns, co-chaired by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Mayor Thomas M. Menino, to begin a nationwide effort to fight illegal guns; and
   
   
7. WHEREAS, today, over 320 mayors, representing over 50 million people across the United States are now members of Mayors Against Illegal Guns; and
   
   
8. WHEREAS, 30,000 Americans across the country are killed every year as a result of gun violence, destroying families and communities in big cities and small towns; and
   
   
9. WHEREAS, as Mayors, we are duty-bound to do everything in our power to protect our residents, especially our children, from harm and there is no greater threat to public safety than the threat of illegal guns; and
   
   
10. WHEREAS, licensed gun dealers are required to run criminal background checks on all buyers, but a loophole in the law enables criminals to avoid these checks if they buy from gun-sellers who do not have licenses. Often operating at gun shows, these unlicensed sellers give criminals the opportunity to sidestep the background check system and easily purchase guns. Congress should close the "gun show loophole" by passing S.2577 and H.R. 96; and
    
    
11. WHEREAS, the federal government can shut down a gun dealer for selling illegally, it has nevertheless permitted dealers to sell off their inventory - without conducting background checks. Congress should end such gun dealer firesales; and
    
    
12. WHEREAS, under the current law, if a person can't buy guns - because he or she has a criminal record or a history of mental illness - that person cannot sell guns either. But the law fails to require dealers to conduct background checks on their employees, even though they already use the background check system in their stores every day. Congress should require gun store employee background checks; and
    
    
13. WHEREAS, six years after 9/11, the federal government can stop suspects on terror watch lists from getting on airplanes, but it cannot stop them from buying firearms. Congress should close the "the Terror Gap" by passing S.1237/H.R.2074,
    
    
14. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that The United States Conference of Mayors calls on Congress to enact legislation that would prevent guns from getting into the hands of criminals by closing serious gaps in the gun background check system. USCM calls on Congress to close the gun show loophole, end the gun dealer fire sales provision, require gun dealers to perform background checks on their employees, and close the terror gap; and
    
    
15. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that The United States Conference of Mayors calls on Congress to reject legislative proposals such as the Tiahrt amendment and others that limit our cities' ability to solve and prevent crime in our communities.