Washington, DC — Today, Rep. Lucy McBath (GA-06) joined President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, First Lady Jill Biden, and Attorney General Merrick Garland in the Rose Garden at the White House for a landmark announcement of actions to end instances of gun violence and save countless American lives.

“Americans continue to die every day from gun violence. Families live in fear of losing a loved one, of sending them off to school and never seeing them return, and of feeling the same pain my family feels every day,” said McBath. “This gun violence is unacceptable, it is unconscionable, and we must do better. A majority of Americans support common-sense measures to help stop this violence, and today, I am truly proud to stand with the President as he fights for future generations, for survivors, and for mothers like me. I thank him and Attorney General Garland for their courage and their action to save American lives.” 

McBath has been a champion of legislation to end the gun violence crisis in our country and has been called “one of the House Democratic Caucus’s most important voices on gun control legislation” during her time in Congress. McBath lost her son, Jordan, when he was shot and killed by a man who opened fire on a car of unarmed teenage boys at a gas station in Jacksonville, Florida, in 2012. Jordan was 17 years old.

McBath applauded the proposed $5 billion investment over eight years in community violence intervention programs included in the American Jobs Plan. In 2019, she secured $25 million in funding for major gun violence prevention research at the Centers for Disease Control and the National Institutes of Health—the first of its kind in 20 years.

The President’s announcement comes after months of horrific shootings in America, most recently in Boulder, Colorado and in McBath’s home state of Georgia. The announcement of upcoming action from the White House includes:

• The Justice Department, within 30 days, will issue a proposed rule to help stop the proliferation of “ghost guns.”
• The Justice Department, within 60 days, will issue a proposed rule to make clear when a device marketed as a stabilizing brace effectively turns a pistol into a short-barreled rifle subject to the requirements of the National Firearms Act.
• The Justice Department, within 60 days, will publish model “red flag” legislation for states.
• The Administration is investing in evidence-based community violence interventions.
  • The American Jobs Plan proposes a $5 billion investment over eight years to support community violence intervention programs. A key part of community violence intervention strategies is to help connect individuals to job training and job opportunities.
  • The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is organizing a webinar and toolkit to educate states on how they can use Medicaid to reimburse certain community violence intervention programs, like Hospital-Based Violence Interventions.
  • Five federal agencies are making changes to 26 different programs to direct vital support to community violence intervention programs as quickly as possible. These changes mean we can start increasing investments in community violence interventions as we wait on Congress to appropriate additional funds. Read more about these agency actions here.

• The Justice Department will issue an annual report on firearms trafficking.
• The President will nominate David Chipman to serve as Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.

Last month, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 8, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act, led by GVP Task Force Chair Rep. Mike Thompson (CA-05) and on which McBath is an original co-sponsor. The chamber also passed H.R. 1446, the Enhanced Background Checks Act, led by Democratic Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn (SC-06). The bill will help to address and close the “Charleston Loophole,” which allows a firearm sale to proceed if a background check is not completed within three business days.