WASHINGTON, D.C. — Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Deerfield) is co-sponsoring a bill to make it illegal to post blueprints for 3D-printed guns on the internet. The 3D Printed Gun Safety Act was introduced Friday by Schneider, Rep. Ted Deutsch (D-Boca Raton, Florida), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Weston, Florida) and Carolyn Maloney (D-New York City), according to a release. The House version of the legislation is a companion to a Senate bill introduced last month and sponsored by Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Florida).

The proposal would ban the publication of "digital instructions in the form of computer-aided design files or other code that can automatically program a 3-dimensional printer or similar device to produce a firearm or complete a firearm from an unfinished receiver." The law is not aimed at restricting the First Amendment free speech rights of computer programmers, "but rather to curb the pernicious effects of untraceable—and potentially undetectable—firearms," according to its text. The bill's backers argued 3D-printed plastic guns "can be virtually undetectable when carried through a metal detector or past security screening checkpoints."

Undetectable guns have been banned under federal law since 1988. To comply with the Undetectable Firearms Act, plastic 3D-printed guns have included a metal nail a a firing pin and a piece of steel designed to trigger metal detectors. "If plans for homemade plastic guns are readily available on the internet, with just a few clicks individuals could avoid a background check and build a deadly firearm undetectable by security systems," said Schneider.

"These 3D-printed guns are a threat to the safety of our nation and communities, and I'm glad to join my colleagues in introducing a bill to keep these blueprints from being posted online." The Congressional Democrats sponsoring the plan ban blamed President Donald Trump for a settlement with the U.S. Department of State earlier this year that allowed for the online publication of firearm blueprints and the payment of $39,581 in legal fees to a gun-rights advocacy group.

The deal followed more than five years of litigation and a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in January not to hear arguments on a preliminary injunction that would have allowed the publication of the gun plans. According to Wired, which first reported the April agreement ending the litigation, the states argue the "unexplained, sudden settlement" with the State Department violated the Administrative Procedure Act – the law regulating federal rule-making changes and requiring public comments, among other things. Last week in Seattle, U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik issued a temporary restraining order forcing the removal of files for 3D-printed guns a second time in response to a lawsuit from the attorneys general of 21 states. Gun rights advocates had hailed the settlement as a victory for the Second Amendment, interpreting it as an acknowledgement from the State Department that semi-automatic rifles are not subject to military weapon export controls.