“To establish a Gun Safety Board, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section establishes the Gun Safety Board within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), to be created by the HHS Secretary not later than one year after enactment. The board must (1) not later than two years after enactment, establish a grant program using not less than 50% of appropriated funds for original research on firearm violence reduction (including board-identified topics) and public education on its causes, effects, and prevention; (2) conduct such research; and (3) annually publish in the Federal Register and on an HHS website policy and funding recommendations, research priorities, and findings on the efficacy of existing and proposed state and federal laws in reducing 12 specified categories of firearm violence (i.e., domestic violence, suicide, chronic community violence, police violence, mass shootings, hate crimes, school shootings, health care costs, hospital interventions, socioeconomic impacts, firearm diversions, and unintentional shootings). The board comprises 22 members appointed by the HHS Secretary, including experts in public health, mental health, firearm violence research, trauma surgery, and law enforcement; representatives of firearm industry/users and victims; advocates for racial justice and violence intervention; and designees from 12 federal entities (e.g., NIH, CDC, ATF). Members serve staggered initial terms of 1-4 years and renewable 4-year terms, with pay, travel, staff, monthly meetings, and leadership (chair designated by Secretary; vice chair elected) per specified Title 5 U.S.C. authorities. The section adopts the definition of "firearm" in 18 U.S.C. §921; authorizes $5 million for each of the first two fiscal years after enactment and $25 million annually thereafter; and prohibits reducing other federal gun violence research funds to support this program.