Panel approves gun control bill

WASHINGTON – A bill to expand background check requirements for gun sales cleared its first Senate hurdle Tuesday, with Democrats hoping it could be the vehicle for a compromise measure that would could pass the full chamber.

The Senate Judiciary Committee approved the proposal by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., by a 10-8 vote, with support solely from Democrats.

Schumer said the bill, a variation of a measure he introduced in 2011, represented his “ideal approach” to extending background checks to nearly all gun sales. The proposal faces stiff opposition from Republicans, as well as Democrats from conservative states.

But now that it is out of committee, Schumer said he was optimistic about reaching an agreement.

Expanding background checks to include most private sales is a centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s push for new gun laws in the aftermath of the Newtown, Conn., school shooting. Currently, only sales by licensed dealers are subject to checks.

Universal background checks had been considered the most likely gun control measure to pass Congress, in part because polling has consistently indicated strong public support. Even among National Rifle Association members, who generally do not support other proposed gun laws, such as an assault weapons ban, background checks notch 74 percent approval.

But negotiations in the Senate have proven thorny. Schumer, along with Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., Mark Steven Kirk, R-Ill., and Tom Coburn, R-Okla., had tried to craft a deal in time for Judiciary Committee consideration. Coburn, a conservative Republican with a top NRA rating, withheld his support out of concern that records of private transactions could lead to a national registry of firearm ownership.

Schumer said that sales records have been maintained by licensed firearms dealers since the Brady Law passed in 1993 without infringing on people’s Second Amendment rights.

“I would hope and pray we would debate the rational parts of this bill and not say this bill is going to lead to confiscation or registration,” Schumer said. “There is nothing in this bill or nothing in the history since the Brady Law was passed that indicates a scintilla of truth to that argument.”

Also on Tuesday, the committee approved a school safety proposal by a 14-4 vote. The bill authorizes $40 million annually for a federal grant program that would pay for security measures, such as classroom locks and surveillance cameras.

The committee suspended consideration on a bill sponsored by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines until Thursday. A fourth gun bill, which addresses gun trafficking and so-called “straw purchases,” was passed by the panel last week.