Gun Violence Prevention and Community Safety Act of 2022
Latest action. Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdictionA court's legal authority to hear a case: over the subject matter, the parties, and the territory.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) of the committee concerned.
Gun Violence Prevention and Community Safety Act of 2022
This bill makes various changes to the federal framework governing the sale, transfer, and possession of firearms and ammunition. Among other changes, the bill
generally requires individuals to obtain a license to purchase, acquire, or possess a firearm or ammunition;
raises the minimum age—from 18 years to 21 years—to purchase firearms and ammunition;
establishes new background check requirements for firearm transfers between private parties;
creates a statutory process for a family or household member to petition a court for an extreme risk protection order to remove firearms from an individual who poses a risk of committing violence;
restricts the import, sale, manufacture, transfer, or possession of semiautomatic assault weapons and large capacity ammunition feeding devices;
restricts the manufacture, sale, transfer, purchase, or receipt of ghost guns (i.e., guns without serial numbers);
requires federally licensed gun dealers to submit and annually certify compliance with a security plan to detect and deter firearm theft;
removes limitations on the civil liability of gun manufacturers;
allows the Consumer Product Safety Commission to issue safety standards for firearms and firearm components;
establishes a community violence intervention grant program; and
promotes research on firearms safety and gun violence prevention.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on December 20, 2022. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 20, 2022: Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 117th Congress (2021-22), 362 of the 15,242 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.4 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Henry Johnson (D-GA) introduced it on December 20, 2022, and 10 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 10 Democrats.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on December 20, 2022, 1360 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 1360 days ago, on December 20, 2022.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 117th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2023 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers