House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (right, foreground) talks to dozens of gun-control advocates and activists before a hearing on gun violence legislation on Capitol Hill on Feb. 6. | Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Congress House Democrats make first major move to tighten gun laws

House Democrats took their first steps as a new majority on Wednesday to tighten federal gun laws, underscoring their commitment to act on a top priority a day before the first anniversary of the deadly mass shooting at a Parkland, Fla., high school.

The Judiciary Committee approved two bills that would expand federal background checks for firearm purchases. The legislation, which now heads to the House floor but stands virtually no chance in the Senate, makes good on Democrats’ promises to move swiftly to combat gun violence since taking control of the chamber this year.


“There is a clear consensus among academics, public health experts and law enforcement personnel that universal background checks would greatly enhance public safety,” said Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.). “Despite the obvious need to take action, however, Congress, for too long has done virtually nothing.”

The measure would require virtually all purchasers of firearms to undergo a background check — including those buying through gun shows, over the Internet or through other private transactions.

Thursday is the anniversary of the school shooting that killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland and spurred a national student movement in favor of increased gun control.

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The House bill was numbered H.R. 8 in honor of former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-Ariz.), who nearly died after being shot during a constituent event in Tucson, Ariz,. on Jan. 8, 2011. The shooting left six people dead and 13 wounded.

A handful of House Republicans, including Peter King (R-N.Y.), have signed onto the universal background check bill, which is sponsored by Mike Thompson (D-Calif.), the head of a Democratic gun violence prevention task force.

But the GOP overwhelmingly opposes the measure, which was approved by the Judiciary Committee on a 23-15 vote along party lines.

The vote was the first congressional action in favor of tightening gun laws in years. Several Democrats on the committee were in tears after the vote, including Rep. Lucy McBath (D-Ga.), a freshman member of Congress who was inspired to run for office because of the shooting death of her son, Jordan.

Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), the ranking member on the Judiciary Committee, said the bill would “turn law-abiding citizens into criminals with the stroke of a pen” by requiring, for instance, background checks for the “countless firearms transfers” among friends or family members.

Democrats on the committee rejected a handful of Republican amendments that largely would have eased some of the background check requirements.

Lawmakers sparred over those amendments during the contentious daylong markup, debating whether the expanded background checks would infringe on Second Amendment rights. They also argued over GOP proposals to increase law enforcement reporting to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of suspected undocumented immigrants who fail gun background checks.

GOP lawmakers also offered amendments that they said were aimed at addressing concerns about the fees that gun owners would face to conduct background checks, especially in cases where they were transferring guns to friends or relatives.

Democrats accused Republicans of offering amendments in bad faith to slow down the bill. Republicans, meanwhile, said Democrats were ramming the bill through the committee without input from minority members.

Another bill advanced by the committee tonight would close what Democrats call a major “loophole” in the existing federal background check process under which gun dealers are able to sell a firearm if the National Instant Criminal Background Check System doesn’t make a determination within three days.

Dylann Roof, who killed nine people at the Emmanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C., in 2015, was able to purchase a gun even though he wasn’t legally allowed to because his federal background check remained unfinished after the three-day waiting period.

The Democratic bill, H.R. 1112, cleared the panel 21-14. It would require a gun dealer to wait longer, for 10 days, to receive an answer from the background check system. If the background check remains unfinished, the prospective gun purchaser could appeal to the attorney general or buy the gun after an additional 10-day waiting period, supporters said.

