S.Amdt. 4655

This amendment, submitted by Mr. Coons, aims to change the law regarding how firearms are transferred between people who do not have a license. It proposes to add new rules to Section 922 of title 18, United States Code.

Purpose and Changes

The amendment intends to make it illegal for anyone who is not a licensed dealer, manufacturer, or importer to transfer a firearm to another unlicensed person unless a licensee first takes possession of the firearm to comply with specific requirements.

The amendment includes several exceptions where these rules would not apply:

• Law enforcement officers, armed private security professionals, or members of the Armed Forces acting within their official duties.
• Bona fide gifts or loans between specific family members, including spouses, domestic partners, parents/step-parents and children/step-children, siblings, aunts/uncles and nieces/nephews, or grandparents and grandchildren.
• Transfers to estate representatives, trustees, or administrators that happen by law after someone dies.
• Temporary transfers needed to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm.
• Transfers approved by the Attorney General under section 5812 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
• Temporary transfers for target shooting, hunting, trapping, or fishing (under specific conditions), or when the transferee is in the presence of the transferor.

Additional Requirements

• Licensed importers, manufacturers, or dealers cannot transfer a firearm to an unlicensed person unless they provide a notice of the prohibition and the person certifies they received that notice.
• The amendment specifies that it cannot be used to create a national firearms registry or stop a State from enacting its own laws on the same subject.
• These changes would take effect 180 days after the Act is enacted.