Statement by Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) in the Congressional Record.
Re: introduction of S 637, the Internet Gun Trafficking Act.
Date: March 16, 1999.
Source: Congressional Record, page S2776.

Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Internet Gun Trafficking Act of 1999. The Act would plug a gaping loophole in the enforcement of federal firearms laws--the ability of felons and minors to find guns for sale on-line and illegally acquire those guns without detection.

The Internet affords computer users--including children and felons--easier-than-ever access to individuals offering firearms for sale. It also facilitates firearms transactions in which sellers and buyers need not meet face-to-face. For these reasons, individuals who are legally prohibited from purchasing or selling firearms can turn to the Internet to find others willing to engage in gun transactions with them--either knowing or not knowing of the illegality of such transactions. Unlike firearms sales at gun dealerships and even gun shows, illegal Internet firearms sales occur `sight unseen,' thus presenting significant enforcement challenges for federal, state and local authorities.

In particular, a number of Internet web-sites are designed specifically to allow individuals who are not licensed firearms dealers to offer their firearms for sale. These individuals post phone numbers or e-mail addresses by which potential buyers may contact them. Unfortunately, the operators of these web-sites do not monitor the interactions between firearms sellers and buyers. Thus, sellers and buyers may with `no-questions-asked' and little prospect of detection evade laws prohibiting sales of certain types of firearms, prohibiting firearms sales to felons and minors, and prohibiting the direct shipment of firearms to unlicensed persons.

Last month, eBay--a popular on-line auction site that had allowed users to list firearms for sale--changed its policy to prohibit auctions selling firearms, explaining: `The current laws governing the sale of firearms were created for the non-Internet sale of firearms. These laws may work well in the real world, but they work less well for the on-line trading of firearms, where the seller and the buyer rarely meet face-to-face. The on-line seller cannot readily guarantee that the buyer meets all the qualifications and complies with the laws governing the sale of firearms.'

The Internet Gun Trafficking Act of 1999 would end the unlicensed sale of firearms using the Internet.

First, it would require anyone who operates an Internet web-site which offers firearms for sale or otherwise facilitates the sale of firearms posted or listed on the web-site to become a federally licensed firearms manufacturer, importer, or dealer. Currently, persons who operate web-sites that post classified advertisements for the sale of hundreds of firearms need not be licensed under federal law, even though such sales may be intricately linked to their trade or business and provide them with substantial profits. Requiring these persons to secure a federal firearms license would, among other things, enable them to more actively monitor firearms transactions facilitated by their web-sites.

Second, it would require anyone who operates an Internet web-site which offers firearms for sale or otherwise facilitates the sale of firearms posted or listed on the web-site to notify the Secretary of the Treasury of the address of the web-site. This requirement aims to facilitate necessary law enforcement investigations of Internet firearms sales.

Third, it would require anyone who operates an Internet web-site which posts or lists firearms for sale on behalf of other persons to serve as a `middleman' for any resulting gun transactions. Under the bill, the web-site operators in question would do this by, first, prohibiting the posting of information on these sites that would enable prospective firearms sellers and buyers to contact one another directly (such as phone numbers or e-mail addresses), and thus bypass involvement by web-site operators, and, second, requiring that all firearms sold as a result of being listed on their web-sites be shipped to them, as federally licensed firearms dealers, rather than directly to the buyers. Once the operator of the web-site received a firearm from the seller, it would have to comply with federal firearms laws in transferring the firearm to the buyer, including laws requiring that firearms be shipped to a licensed dealer in an unlicensed buyer's state rather than directly to an unlicensed buyer.

And fourth, it would prohibit unlicensed individuals who offer firearms for sale on `gun show' web-sites from shipping firearms sold as a result of being listed on such web-sites to anyone other than the web-site operator.

Certainly, there is much to embrace about the Internet. It facilitates commercial competition and places a wealth of valuable and formerly inaccessible information at the fingertips of computer users. But as we praise this important new medium of communication and commerce, we cannot afford to ignore its potential for facilitating illegal and dangerous conduct. I believe that the Internet Gun Trafficking Act of 1999 is a measured and appropriate response to the challenges posed by the Internet to the enforcement of federal firearms laws. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.