February 27, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 36 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Page H2242]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         BACKGROUND CHECK BILL

  (Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission 
to address the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, more than 500 
Pennsylvanians are murdered with guns each year, causing untold 
suffering and tearing our communities apart. Pennsylvanians are crying 
out for commonsense legislation to stop the bloodshed, legislation like 
H.R. 8, the bill before us today.
  Now, nobody thinks that universal background checks would eliminate 
gun violence, but the facts suggest that they would reduce it.
  In 2017, the Pennsylvania State Police ran over a million background 
checks on would-be gun purchasers. The vast majority of purchases were 
approved within a few minutes. But 13,000 were stopped, and the 
background checks led to the arrest of 150 wanted fugitives and the 
arrest and conviction of 500 other individuals for illegally attempting 
to obtain a firearm. Those background checks put some bad guys in jail, 
and they probably saved some lives as well.
  Let's help our police enforce the laws that keep guns out of 
dangerous hands. Vote for the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019.

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