Americans have been wondering what, if any, concrete gun control reforms would be made in response to the horrific massacre that left 17 innocent individuals dead last month in Parkland, Florida. Today, the Department of Justice announced it has proposed regulation of firearms to include a ban on “bump stocks.”
“Today the Department of Justice submitted to the Office of Management and Budget a notice of a proposed regulation to clarify that the definition of “machinegun” in the National Firearms Act and Gun Control Act includes bump stock type devices, and that federal law accordingly prohibits the possession, sale, or manufacture of such devices,” read the press release.
As noted by Katie Pavlich, a bump stock is an add on to a semi-automatic weapon which makes rate of fire on semi-automatic firearms faster. But, this new proposal would expand the definition of the term “machinegun” to include weapons modified by bump stocks.
President Trump is absolutely committed to ensuring the safety and security of every American and he has directed us to propose a regulation addressing bump stocks,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in the statement.
“To that end, the Department of Justice has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget a notice of a proposed regulation to clarify that the National Firearms and Gun Control Act defines ‘machinegun’ to include bump stock type devices.”
It should be noted that the gunman in the Marjory Stoneman Douglass High School shooting did not use a bump stock to inflict the carnage during his rampage.