NEW YORK — Today, Everytown for Gun Safety and its grassroots networks, Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, released comprehensive guidance on action that state and local leaders can take immediately to implement and make use of the historic policies included in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA). On Monday, the White House held a ceremony with gun safety advocates and gun violence survivors to celebrate the passage of the BSCA.
“The historic Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is officially on the books and now it’s up to states to put it to work,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. “This bill includes critical federal funding for effective public safety measures and long-overdue federal policies to help state and local leaders save lives in their communities.”
“States have been on the front lines of combating the gun violence epidemic without comprehensive federal laws for far too long, but thankfully we’ve now changed the landscape,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action. “Now there are new life saving tools and funding for states that must quickly be put into use.”
“With the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, state and local leaders have new and vital federal support in the fight to end gun violence and must do everything they can to take advantage of this historic legislation,” said Monisha Henley, senior director of state affairs at Everytown for Gun Safety. “States should apply for new federal funding to strengthen their red flag laws, fund community violence intervention groups, improve background checks, and start helping to enforce new federal laws on gun trafficking and to disarm abusive dating partners – immediately. With smart and effective implementation, this bill will save lives.”
The guidance includes actions governors, state legislatures, and local leaders can take right now to to help fulfill the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act’s promise to save lives and combat gun violence, including by:
- Taking advantage of the new federal funding available to states for implementing and strengthening red flag laws
- Preparing for the enhanced background checks for young people and raising the minimum age to purchase a gun to 21
- Applying for new grant funding for community violence intervention programs
- Submitting domestic violence and other prohibiting records into the background check system, tapping new federal money available for these purposes
- Helping federal officials to identify high-volume gun sellers and to crack down on gun trafficking
- Using new grant funding to improve school safety with education about secure gun storage, threat assessment programs, and school security and emergency planning