No. 2 Senate Republican proposing gun background check bill

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By ALAN FRAM

WASHINGTON (AP) — Backed by the National Rifle Association, the Senate's No. 2 Republican leader is introducing legislation that would reward states for sending more information about residents with serious mental problems to the federal background check system for firearms purchasers.

The bill promoted Wednesday by Sen. John Cornyn, who has an A-plus rating from the NRA for his gun rights record, is far more modest than a Senate measure expanding background check requirements that the organization and Republicans helped defeat two years ago. Cornyn's proposal also is narrower than a measure a top Senate Democrat announced this week.

Still, the legislation represents a rare effort by a leading Republican to curb some firearms purchases. The NRA, a leading force for decades against gun restrictions, has backed some bills before limiting the ability of mentally troubled people to buy firearms.

Recent shootings have drawn attention to weaknesses in the background check system. The gunman in last month's killings in a Louisiana movie theater had mental problems that went unreported to the federal database.

FULL story at link.



FILE - In this July 29, 2015 file photo, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. With the support of the National Rifle Association, Cornyn is introducing legislation to reward states that send more information about residents with serious mental problems to the federal background check system for firearms purchasers, the lawmaker said Wednesday. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/dc505f338a9c4cf7957fb20f72bfc5c0/no-2-senate-republican-proposing-gun-background-check-bill

[geek tragedy]

1. dishonest head fake. States don't maintain databases of the mentally ill.

Those records are all sealed per HIPAA. So, there's nothing to share.

[HereSince1628]

2. It's not quite that clean...and btw HIPAA didn't preclude reporting for LE purposes

where safety is at issue. To clear up any doubts, in 2013 Obama authorized changes in rules regulating HIPAA so that they directly address reporting to NICS.

Of course all this required reporting of mental health records to fill gaps in NICS does nothing to fill the gap created by ~75%-80% of people who never seek clinical help and so have no record of their mental illnesses.

And there are many mental health providers who feel its wrong to be criminalizing mental illness by placing mentally ill persons on a list called a "criminal" check system. They feel that generates more stigma/discrimination against the mentally ill which in turn contributes to resistance of people to seek treatment. The extent to which that is true may not really be knowable,


The data below comes from: http://smartgunlaws.org/mental-health-reporting-policy-summary/

Here is the short list of states that require collection of mental health records into state database:

Arkansas
California
Michigan
Ohio
Utah


Here is the list of states that require reporting mental health records to NICS whether or not the state maintains its own database:

Alabama Alaska Arizona
Colorado Connecticut
Delaware Florida Georgia
Hawaii Idaho Illinois
Indiana Iowa Kansas
Kentucky Louisiana Maine
Maryland Massachusetts Minnesota
Mississippi Missouri Nebraska
Nevada New Jersey New York
North Carolina North Dakota Oklahoma
Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island
South Carolina South Dakota
Tennessee Texas Virginia
Washington West Virginia Wisconsin


There is not uniformity among states about state law and regulation of gun purchasing, what I suspect is being sought although the article doesn't say so is reporting from states for records that meet these standards:

Determined by a court or other lawful authority to be a danger to self or others because of a mental disorder or defect;

Determined by a court or other lawful authority to lack the mental capacity to contract or manage his or her own affairs because of a mental disorder or defect, including any person appointed a guardian on this basis (already in 15 states);

Formally committed involuntarily to a mental institution or asylum as an inpatient (Most states report at least some individuals) or outpatient (already in 21 states);

Found not guilty by reason of insanity, mental disease or defect, or lack of mental responsibility in a criminal case;

Found guilty but insane in a criminal case;

Found incompetent to stand trial;

Who falls within the categories of individuals prohibited under state law from possessing firearms (currently 6 states);

or Who has previously fallen into one of these categories

[Fred Sanders]

3. Supported by the NRA? An 'A' rating? This 'proposal' shows me the gun lovers and their corrupt

politicians are feeling the heat of righteous public outrage over all the Doing Nothing as Americans are slaughtered in the streets, homes, schools, theatres, everywhere and anywhere at any time by the thousands by guns.

Keep up the pressure on the mass murder-enablers and their enabling media until we melt the guns down.

Another transparent attempt to make gun control all about mental health and hoping the problem of 320 million guns goes away until the next mass murder with guns.

Australia....learn and do as they did. Simple. Effective. Easily doable.

Fuck the NRA, their apology police and their screeching idiot purchased politicians, and fuck every single word or "proposal" they dishonestly and deflectively spew.

[friendly_iconoclast]

4. The phrase "spittle flecked" comes to mind when I read posts like that

No guns will be melted down

[onehandle]

5. 'Backed by the National Rifle Association'

Fail.

[BOSNYCDC]

6. Mental illnes and gun violence is the biggest red herring going

No data to support the claim that those with mental illness are more likely to be gun-violent than those without mental illness

TONS of data to support the claim that those with mental illness are more likely to kill themselves with guns than are those without mental illness

Maybe I've missed something but are Republicans proposing an anti-suicide bill? Or are they once again diverting attention from the fact that most people that kill people with guns are not mentally ill, but mentally ill folks make great scapegoats.

SO FRUSTRATING

[AlinPA]

7. "It's all about mental illness": Bullshit.