S 150 · 113th Congress 2013–2015, ended

Assault Weapons Ban of 2013

Latest action · Mar 14, 2013 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 27.

Progress

Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.

  1. IntroducedJan 24, 2013
  2. Passed SenateNot reached
  3. Passed HouseNot reached
  4. To the PresidentNot reached
  5. Became lawNot reached

Summary

Assault Weapons Ban of 2013 - (Sec. 3) Amends the federal criminal code to ban the import, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession of a semiautomatic assault weapon, including:

  • a semiautomatic rifle that can accept a detachable magazine and has any one of the following characteristics: (1) a pistol grip; (2) a forward grip; (3) a folding, telescoping, or detachable stock; (4) a grenade or rocket launcher; (5) a barrel shroud; or (6) a threaded barrel;
  • a semiautomatic rifle or pistol with a fixed magazine that can accept more than 10 rounds;
  • a semiautomatic pistol that can accept a detachable magazine and has any one of the following characteristics: (1) a threaded barrel, (2) a second pistol grip, (3) a barrel shroud, (4) the capacity to accept a detachable magazine at some location outside of the pistol grip, or (5) a semiautomatic version of an automatic firearm;
  • a semiautomatic shotgun that has any one of the following characteristics: (1) a folding, telescoping, or detachable stock; (2) a pistol grip; (3) a fixed magazine that can accept more than five rounds; (4) the ability to accept a detachable magazine; (5) a forward grip; or (6) a grenade or rocket launcher;
  • a shotgun with a revolving cylinder;
  • firearms that are specifically listed as prohibited by this Act and copies, duplicates, variants, or altered facsimiles with the capability of any such weapon;
  • all belt-fed semiautomatic firearms;
  • any combination of parts from which any such prohibited firearm can be assembled; and
  • the frame or receiver of a prohibited rifle or shotgun.

Excludes from such ban any semiautomatic assault weapon that: (1) is lawfully possessed on the date of enactment of this Act (grandfathered weapon); (2) is manually operated by bolt, pump, lever, or slide action; (3) has been rendered permanently inoperable; (4) is an antique firearm; or (5) is used for law enforcement or security purposes or for testing or experimentation authorized by the Attorney General.

Identifies, by make and model, firearms that are specifically exempted from the ban imposed by this Act.

Requires the Attorney General to establish and maintain a record of the make, model, and date of manufacture of any semiautomatic assault weapon which the Attorney General is made aware has been used in relation to a crime under federal or state law.

Makes it unlawful to: (1) import, sell, manufacture, transfer, or possess a large capacity ammunition feeding device (generally, a device that can accept more than 10 rounds of ammunition); or (2) store or keep any grandfathered semiautomatic weapon that may become accessible by an individual who is prohibited from receiving or possessing such a weapon. Requires identification markings (i.e., serial number and the date of manufacture) on semiautomatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices. Provides for the seizure and forfeiture of prohibited large capacity ammunition feeding devices.

(Sec. 5) Makes it unlawful for an unlicensed individual to transfer a grandfathered semiautomatic weapon to another unlicensed individual, unless a licensed importer, manufacturer, or dealer: (1) has first taken custody of the weapon for the purpose of complying with existing national instant criminal background check requirements; and (2) upon taking custody, complies with all firearms requirements as if the licensee were transferring the weapon from the licensee's inventory to the unlicensed transferee. Sets forth an exception for the temporary transfer of possession in a licensed target facility or established range for the purpose of participating in target shooting. Requires implementing regulations to set a maximum fee that licensees may charge for services provided, but prohibits such regulations from imposing recordkeeping requirements on any unlicensed transferor or from requiring licensees to facilitate such transfers.

(Sec. 6) Amends the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to allow the use of Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program funds to pay compensation to individuals who surrender semiautomatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices under a buy-back program.

(Sec. 7) Requires: (1) the Attorney General to instruct the Director of the National Institutes of Justice to conduct a peer-reviewed factual study of incidents of mass shootings in the United States, and (2) the Director to report the findings of such study to Congress within one year. Requires the Director to examine the impact upon perpetrators of specified factors, including childhood abuse or neglect, exposure to criminal acts or bullying, mental illness, school supportiveness, the availability of firearms and of weapons information, depictions of violence in video games and the media, and poverty or other socioeconomic factors.

Cosponsors 24

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 24, 2013 to Sep 10, 2013; 17 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

SeatCosponsorSigned on
D-MDBarbara A. MikulskiOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-CABarbara BoxerOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-MDBenjamin L. CardinOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-HIBrian SchatzOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-MICarl LevinOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-NYCharles E. SchumerOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-CTChristopher MurphyOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-MAElizabeth WarrenOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-NJFrank R. LautenbergOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-RIJack ReedOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-WVJohn D. Rockefeller IVOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-NYKirsten E. GillibrandOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-CTRichard BlumenthalOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-ILRichard J. DurbinOriginalJan 24, 2013
D-NJRobert MenendezOriginalJan 24, 2013

Committees 1

Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.

ChamberCommitteeWhat it did
SenateJudiciary Committee
Referred Jan 25, 2013Hearings Feb 27, 2013Markup Mar 14, 2013Reported Mar 14, 2013
Constitution Subcommittee
Hearings Feb 12, 2013

Actions 10

Everything that happened, newest first.

  1. Mar 14, 2013Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported with amendments favorably.
  2. Mar 14, 2013Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Leahy with amendments. Without written report.
  3. Mar 14, 2013Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 27.
  4. Mar 7, 2013Committee on the Judiciary. Committee consideration and Mark Up Session held.
  5. Feb 27, 2013Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 113-874.

In the Congressional Record 4

Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.

WhereIn the RecordMembersDate
SenateDebate and remarks S3333Barbara Boxer D-CAJun 2, 2014
SenateDebate and remarks S2677Al Franken D-MNApr 16, 2013
SenateDebate and remarks S2453Carl Levin D-MIApr 8, 2013
SenateDebate and remarks S288–S291Dianne Feinstein D-CAJan 24, 2013

Research

What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.

Printed hearings 3

Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.

NumberHearingCommitteeHeld
Serial No. 113-181CYANOTOXINS IN DRINKING WATER113 pagesEnergy and Commerce CommitteeNov 19, 2014
S. Hrg. 113-874THE ASSAULT WEAPONS BAN OF 2013376 pagesJudiciary CommitteeFeb 27, 2013
S. Hrg. 113-870PROPOSALS TO REDUCE GUN VIOLENCE: PROTECTING OUR COMMUNITIES WHILE RESPECTING THE SECOND AMENDMENT664 pagesJudiciary CommitteeFeb 12, 2013

CRS reports 1

Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.

Cite it 1

Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.

ProductTitleKindPublished
R42987Gun Control Legislation in the 113th Congress ArchivedReportJan 8, 2015

Related bills 2

Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.

BillTitleRelationshipLatest action
HR 437Assault Weapons Ban of 2013Related billFeb 28, 2013
S 691High-Capacity Ammunition Magazine Ban of 2013Related billApr 10, 2013

Titles 3

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced
A bill to regulate assault weapons, to ensure that the right to keep and bear arms is not unlimited, and for other purposes.
Short Titles as Introduced
Assault Weapons Ban of 2013
Short Titles as Reported to Senate
Assault Weapons Ban of 2013

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement.

Text 2

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

  1. Mar 14, 2013Reported to Senate
  2. Jan 24, 2013Introduced in Senate

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Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.