Washington (December 14, 2023) - On the 11th anniversary of the Sandy Hook mass shooting that took 26 lives, including 20 children, Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) reacted to Republicans blocking his 3D Printed Guns Safety Act yesterday, which would make it unlawful to intentionally distribute 3D printer files that could produce firearms or related parts:
“Today, on the anniversary of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, it is unconscionable that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle continue to ignore the facts. The availability of guns is a primary contributor to the rise in gun violence, and gun violence knows no boundaries. The dangers of gun violence and 3D printed guns are tearing communities apart. We cannot allow the online availability of downloadable firearms to add fuel to the fire that already is a massive gun violence public safety crisis. These 3D printed guns are not typically serialized and are not readily traceable, which unnecessarily complicates local law enforcement efforts to solve crimes in the communities they serve. We must put an end to the proliferation of these deadly weapons once and for all.”
The 3D Printed Guns Safety Act has 28 cosponsors in the Senate, including Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawai’i), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawai’i), Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).
On National Gun Violence Awareness Day in June, Senator Markey reintroduced a slate of gun violence prevention bills, including the 3D Printed Gun Safety Act, the Keeping Gun Dealers Honest Act, the Gun Violence Prevention Through Financial Intelligence Act, and the Making America Safe and Secure (MASS) Act. In March, Senator Markey reintroduced the Gun Violence Prevention Research Act, legislation that would authorize annual funding for the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to conduct public health research on reducing gun violence. In February, Senator Markey introduced the Protecting Kids from Gun Marketing Act to ban the marketing of firearms to children.
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