The ATF, charged with policing the gun industry, lets dealers get away with falsifying records and selling firearms without background checks.
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American lives, shaped by guns.
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Ask The Trace
A reader asks about a provision in the new Violence Against Women Act that requires the federal government to notify local officials when someone fails a background check.
Background Checks
A provision to notify local officials when someone fails a federal background check could be the only gun reform measure to hit President Joe Biden’s desk before the midterms.
The FBI ran 3.9 million screenings last month, topping the previous record for the second time this year.
How We Fix This
The gun background check system is only as good as the records it contains. How one affable bureaucrat helped Louisiana set the standard for flagging people banned from owning firearms.
The FBI is currently under no obligation to notify the local law enforcement agencies best suited to quickly investigate prohibited firearm purchases.
As Congress weighs gun reforms, here’s what to know about the current system — and the loopholes new laws might close.
Last month, the National Rifle Association rallied its members against a new California regulation compelling gun and ammo buyers who lack the state’s new REAL ID to present a birth certificate or a passport when going through a background…
The legislative push comes in response to the Aurora mass shooting that exposed a loophole which could be arming scores of high-risk people.
Examining the research on the policy Democrats hope to push through Congress.
The bureau is getting ready to tap National Data Exchange and its 400 million records to help screen gun buyers. Experts say it would have blocked the Charleston church shooter from obtaining his murder weapon.
Prompted by a 2007 law, an administrator at the Iowa Department of Public Safety personally oversaw the review of 125,000 state mental health case files to figure out who should be prohibited from owning guns.
Experts say the shortage leaves NICS vulnerable to mistakes and workers at risk of burnout.
On Thursday night, the Republican-dominated Florida Legislature responded to widespread calls for action after the Parkland mass shooting by passing the state’s first significant gun bill in two decades. The legislation was the product of intense debate by members…
A bill to give the state a tool to crack down on "lie-and-try" gun buyers awaits action from lawmakers.
After a weekend of protests and vigils following the massacre at a Florida high school that left 17 dead, President Donald Trump signaled support on Monday for bipartisan legislation aimed at improving records reporting to the federal gun background…
