On June 24th, Congressman Dwight Evans voted to pass the most significant gun bill in the last 30years.

“This is a landmark bill and it will save lives! Philadelphia and the nation have experienced a gun violence pandemic for the last two years, and this bill will make a real difference. I will keep advocating for even more reforms to save more lives – for example, in the House, we passed universal background checks for gun buyers, and I still believe the Senate should pass that as well. But the bill we passed this week represents significant progress and I look forward to seeing President Biden sign it into law!” Evans said.

The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act includes:

Protections for Victims of Domestic Violence: Closing the “Boyfriend Loophole” by adding convicted abusers to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

Cracking Down on Gun Trafficking and Straw Purchases: Preventing dangerous individuals from illegally evading background checks by establishing new federal criminal offenses that cover straw purchasing and trafficking.

Enhanced Background Checks for Buyers Under 21: Requiring longer, enhanced background checks of up to 10 days for gun buyers under age 21.

Anti-Violence Community Initiatives: Providing $250 million in funding for community-based violence prevention initiatives.

Child and Family Mental Health Services: Improving access to mental health services for children, youth and families through Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) and other programs.

Investments in School Safety: Expanding mental health and supportive services in schools, including early identification and intervention programs.

“This historic bill is a foundation that we can build on,” said Evans, who recently released his $51 billion, seven-point federal plan to fight gun violence. The plan is available at evans.house.gov. Evans also continues to call for more state and local government action, as well as more community involvement, to fight gun violence: “We need everyone pulling together to stop this epidemic.”

Although many people would inevitably like to see stronger bans on Assualt styles rifles and high capacity magazines. This bill had strong bi-parisen support including that of Sen. Mitch McConnell from the Republican Caucus. Which shows that some Republicans in congress see the importance of legislation around guns. Especially, coming off the most recent Supreme Court decision, which many believes expands gun rights.