Senate negotiators have outlined a bill to tackle gun violence and respond to the recent mass shootings in Buffalo, New York, and Uwalde, Texas, but have not yet pinned important details that will determine whether the legislation can get 60 votes. to pass.
There is a strong consensus among a group of Democratic and Republican senators that legislation should encourage states to make red-flag laws to remove weapons from dangerous people, strengthen the national system for verifying criminal history and provide money for mental health treatment.
There is also a bipartisan discussion on promoting the safe storage of firearms and further regulating people who sell large numbers of firearms without obtaining a federal firearms license, which will require them to conduct inspections of all sales.
Members of the enlarged bipartisan negotiating team on Wednesday expressed optimism about agreeing on a framework of principles by the end of the week.
“It was a constructive conversation. I am optimistic that we have a way forward, “said Senator Chris Koons (D-Del.) After leaving the Capitol basement lunch.
“I hope so,” he added. “A number of concrete proposals have been discussed that will make a significant difference, and I hope that next day all this will be reduced to a framework that includes [a] a wide range of commitments in terms of the amount in dollars [and] goals. ”
Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.), A member of the negotiating team, estimated that the mental health section of the bill was resolved at 80 percent.
Negotiators say they want to “expand” the pilot program created by the Mental Health Excellence and Addiction Treatment Act of 2014 to fund community behavioral health clinics.
Statistics from the Ministry of Health and Social Services show that people who receive services in these clinics are much less likely to spend time in prison or homeless.
Republican and Democrat negotiators say there is strong support for providing the National System of Immediate Verification of Criminal Origin to juvenile delinquency files for people between the ages of 18 and 21.
Senator John Cornin (R-Texas) on Wednesday suggested that Salvador Ramos, the 18-year-old shooter who killed 21 people in Uwalde, had managed to pass an inspection because his juvenile file was not recorded.
“As he did not look back at his teenage files, he passed an inspection. It was as if he had been born on his 18th birthday, and nothing that had happened before mattered. That’s obviously a problem, “Cornin said on the floor.
The senior senator from Texas highlighted the treatment of mental health as one of the negotiating team’s top priorities.
“For me, the shootings are a symptom of a bigger problem, which is the failure of our mental health system in America,” he said.
Cornin later warned that a proposal sponsored by Senators Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) And Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) To increase funding for mental health and community addiction services would cost a lot of money.
Senator Tom Tillis (RN.C.) said negotiators expect $ 7 billion to boost mental health services and strengthen and reform the criminal history screening system, but other senators say the figures are still fluid.
Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Who is working on a proposal to encourage states to make red-flag laws, said part of the bill would send “hundreds of millions of dollars” to states.
Republicans in the group say they will insist on offsetting the cost of the gun violence package by cutting other federal spending.
“If we can find compensation for the costs, then I think it helps us get the votes we need, and I also think it’s fiscally responsible,” Cornin said.
Although there is a growing consensus among the bipartisan Senate negotiating team on what should be in the bill under discussion, other Republicans are beginning to oppose the negotiation.
Several Republican senators on Wednesday voiced concerns about the direction of the talks, signaling that a large number of Republicans are likely to vote against the bill.
Steve Scaliz (R-La.) Said on Wednesday that imposing new restrictions on gun ownership would be the wrong approach. He argued that restricting access to weapons would be tantamount to banning aircraft following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
“On this day, planes were used as weapons to kill thousands of people and terrorize our country. “There was no talk of banning planes,” Scalis told a news conference.
Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (DN.Y.) said he would give negotiators at least until the end of the week to come up with a bipartisan framework for tackling gun violence.
“These bipartisan talks deserve the space they need to bring about significant results, so I hope my colleagues continue to make progress towards an effective agreement, I hope by the end of the week,” he said on Wednesday.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) Said on Tuesday that many members of his conference wanted to see the bipartisan group reach an agreement, but he warned, as before, that proposed reforms must respond directly to the mass shooting. in Uwalde.
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Senator Chris Murphy (Connecticut), the Democratic’s chief negotiator, told reporters: “We are in the process of bringing everyone together on a common set of reforms.”
“I remain confident that we can reach an agreement,” he said. “Red flags, improving the system for checking the past, financing mental health remain the framework.
“There is the most common basis around the cost of mental health, because it is not so complicated politically,” he added.
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