Rep. Meeks Introduces Bill to Encourage Law Enforcement Agencies to Report Lost or Stolen Weapons

Press Release

Congressman Meeks released the following statement after he introduced a bill to prevent the use of law enforcement weapons in crimes:

"In at least nine different states, when a private citizen loses a firearm or has it stolen, he or she is required to report it. In every single state, when a federally licensed firearm dealer loses track of a weapon, the dealer must report it to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives's (ATF) National Tracing Center. In fact, many, not all, local law enforcement agencies do the same. My bill simply encourages all state and local law enforcement agencies to adopt this best practice.

"Specifically, my bill would incentivize states to pass legislation requiring local law enforcement agencies to report missing weapons to the ATF's National Tracing Center. Requiring agents to report lost firearms would increase accountability, encourage safer weapons storage, provide ATF a clearer picture of weapons unaccounted for, and allow investigators to quickly identify the origin of stolen weapons in if used in a crime. This bill will help protect all Americans from preventable gun violence. I thank the cosponsors of this legislation for joining me in this effort, and I hope the Republican majority will decide to take up this common sense measure."

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