Congressman Don Beyer (D-VA) joined Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI) and dozens of Democratic co-sponsors today to introduce the Assault Weapons Ban of 2015, which would renew the federal ban on military-style weapons and high-capacity magazines. President Bill Clinton signed the original ban into law, but Congress allowed it to expire in 2004 under the Bush Administration.

“Assault weapons are extremely dangerous in the wrong hands and have no place in civilian life,” said Rep. Beyer. “These types of military-grade weapons were designed to inflict mass casualties and belong in the hands of our military and law enforcement, not untrained civilians.”

“In recent years, the frequency of mass shooting has increased by a factor of four. And more than half of all mass shooters who killed four or more people used an assault weapon. That’s because the sole purpose of an assault weapon is to kill as many people as quickly as possible,” said Rep. Cicilline. “It is absurd that we continue to allow military-style weapons to be bought and sold while mass shootings grow more common. This bill is an important first step that will restore some sanity to the way we treat guns in the United States.”

The bill would prohibit the sale, transfer, manufacturing, and importation of semiautomatic weapons and high-capacity ammunition feeding devices. It would also improve upon the current background check procedure by effectively closing the so-called “Charleston loophole” and requiring law enforcement notification anytime a background check is denied.

Assault weapons were used in attacks last month in San Bernardino and Colorado Springs. Shooters also used them to commit mass murder at Sandy Hook Elementary School, a movie theatre in Aurora, Colorado, and a community college in Roseburg, Oregon.