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HomeMy WebLinkAboutResolutions - 2018.05.02 - 23485MISCELLANEOUS RESOLUTION #18150 BY: Commissioner Marcia Gershenson, District #13 IN RE: BOARD or COMMISSIONERS - REQUIRE UNIVERSAL BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR ALL FIREARMS PURCHASES To the Oakland County Board of Commissioners Chairperson, Ladies and Gentlemen: WHEREAS gun violence is an ongoing and intensifying national public health crisis, exacerbated by the often-unregulated lack of background checks on all gun purchases; and WHEREAS developing practical, effective and legally sustainable policies to separate firearms from people at risk of violence or suicide represents an important, but challenging public health opportunity for gun violence prevention; and WHEREAS the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (N1CS) has been an essential tool in the effort to ensure that individuals who are prohibited under Federal or State law from possessing firearms do not acquire them from Federal Firearms Licensees; and WHEREAS the WS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (NIAA) was a bipartisan effort to strengthen the N1CS by increasing the quantity and quality of relevant records from Federal and State authorities accessible by the system; and WHEREAS 22% of current U.S. gun owners who acquired a firearm within the past 2 years did so without a background check, according to a recent 2017 study by professors from Northeastern University and Harvard School of Public Health as published in the Annals of Internal Medicine; and WHEREAS according to a study by the Department of Justice, between 1994 and 2014, federal, state, and local agencies conducted background checks on more than 180 million firearm applications and denied 2.82 million gun sales to prohibited purchasers; and WHEREAS to date, the background check system has blocked over 3 million firearm sales to prohibited purchasers; and WHEREAS despite this success, the system is undermined by legal loopholes and missing records that enable too many dangerous individuals to obtain weapons they later use in crimes; and WHEREAS it is estimated that state and federal agencies have failed to report more than one million records of persons with dangerous mental illness into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System ("NICS") which initiates background checks into three databases: the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), the Interstate Identification Index, and the NICS Index; and WHEREAS greater participation by agencies in identifying records they possess that are relevant to determining whether an individual is prohibited from possessing a firearm and regularized process for submitting those records to the NICS will strengthen the accuracy and efficiency of the NICS, increasing public safety by keeping guns out of the hands of persons who cannot lawfully possess them; and WHEREAS the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence estimate that 1 out of 5 gun sales occur in "no questions asked" transactions that often take place over the Internet or at gun shows where, in most states, background checks are not required; and WHEREAS this dangerous loophole puts thousands and thousands of guns in the hands of dangerous people like domestic abusers, felons and the dangerously mentally ill; and WHEREAS National and State leaders continue to fail to act to implement sensible gun law reforms that are supported by a majority of the nation; and WHEREAS the Oakland County Board of Commissioners calls upon Congress to address dangerous firearm purchase loopholes and create a true universal background check system; and WHEREAS commonly known as the "gun show loophole", under current Michigan law, a background check is not required to purchase a long gun, rifle or shotgun in transactions between private individuals; and WHEREAS House Bill 5369 and Senate Bill 934 have been introduced in the Michigan Legislature to close this loophole and require background checks for all firearms sales in Michigan; and WHEREAS a recent Quinnipiac University poll found that Ninety-seven percent (97%) of those, voters across the country, surveyed support requiring universal background checks for all gun buyers, while just 2 percent were opposed; and WHEREAS while the Oakland County Board of Commissioners recognizes the Constitutional right to own firearms under the 2 nd Amendment, that right is subject to common sense gun safety regulations such as a universal background checks on ALL gun purchases. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Oakland County Board of Commissioners hereby declares a call to action of the United States Congress and the Michigan Legislature to adopt universal background check legislation on ALL firearm purchasers without further delay. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT that the Board of Commissioners hereby declares their support for Michigan Senate Bill 934 and House Bill 5368 which would amend Michigan law to require background checks for all firearms sales in the state of Michigan. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Oakland County Clerk/Register of Deeds is requested to forward copies of this adopted resolution to the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Attorney General of the United States, the members of the Michigan congressional delegation, the Governor of the State of Michigan, the Lt. Governor of the State of Michigan, the State Senate Majority and Minority leaders, the State House Speaker and Minority leader, the members of the Oakland County delegation to the Michigan Legislature. Chairperson, I move the adoption of the foregoing Resolution. Commissioner Marcia Gehenso District #13 Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner District # Commissioner Commissioner District # District # Resolution #18150 May 2, 2018 The Chairperson referred the resolution to the Public Services Committee. There were no objections.