Executive Summary

With an increase of mass shootings occurring in the U.S., gun control advocates and many Americans push for stricter, more effective legislation that protects U.S. citizens from the prominent threat of gun violence. This policy brief summarizes the state of mass shootings in the U.S., current legislation, and policy proposals and its supporters.

Mass Shootings in the U.S.

Gun violence is revered as a growing problem in the United States. 60% of Americans believe that gun violence is “a very big problem.” Controversy grows by the day as mass shootings are increased, and conversations about actions to be taken from this growing problem lead nowhere. In June 2022, March for Our Lives had a student-led protest in Los Angeles. Thousands of students rallied near Los Angeles City Hall to call for action after the Uvalde and Stoneman Douglas shootings. Survivors from multiple mass shootings attended and expressed their anger for the lack of change, as politicians are taking no stance on change while children are put into danger daily. The joyous 2024 Super Bowl Parade horrifically ended as two men fought with their firearms, impacting almost two dozen people. Threats were made, and many undeserving shots were fired. The Kansas City Chiefs, in a high after their glorious win, released a statement of sorrow, never imagining something so horrific would happen at the annual parade.As all NFL teams decided to make a statement, millions of Americans realized the large-scale impact gun violence has in real time. Football, a sport enjoyed and cherished by millions of Americans, and the Super Bowl, attracting not only football fans but those interested in spending time enjoying a Sunday with their loved ones, were tainted by the image of gun violence. Teams called for prayers and thanked first responders for their help, but some Americans believed otherwise: how much longer can we live in fear? 

Current Legislation

Gun control has increasingly become a highly debated issue, and recent legislative sessions have seen an increased emphasis on the issue on the national, state and local levels. Nationally, members of Congress have passed landmark federal legislation over the last few years, providing updates and reinforcement to the initial frameworks posited in the 1930s.The National Firearms Act (1934) was the first example of federal regulation on firearms, levying a tax and determining registration requirements upon specific types of firearms. It has been repeatedly amended to keep up with rapidly modernizing weapons technology. The subsequent Federal Firearms Act (1938) was repealed and replaced by the Gun Control Act (1968), which expanded regulations. It established a minimum age for purchase, created a serial number requirement, and expanded criteria that render someone ineligible to own a firearm. All of these provisions are still in effect today, albeit with amendments instituted by the “incorporated acts” of the Gun Control Act. These include the Firearms Owners’ Protection Act (1986) and the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (1993), the former of which liberalized existing provisions; the latter creating a five-day waiting period for firearm purchases while the purchaser undergoes a background check (this clause is now obsolete due to the implementation of the “instant check” system).The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (2022) is an extensive piece of gun control legislation, which included an amendment to the Gun Control Act to make the background check for an 18 to 20-year-old purchaser more elaborate; allocated federal funding for mental health services as well as $250 million for community violence prevention initiatives; enacted a five-year ban on owning a firearm for people convicted of domestic violence; and established clarified guidelines for background checks and gun trafficking penalties. On the state level, policies vary widely depending on the state’s dominant political party and attitude towards the issue of gun violence versus gun rights. Statistics show that, as a whole, more Americans view gun violence as a major national problem than they did in previous years, yet individual states vary tremendously. Extreme risk protection orders/“red flag laws” are at one end of the legislative spectrum. Such “red flag laws” have gone into effect in states including California, Illinois, Colorado and Vermont. In 2023, Washington, Illinois, and Delaware signed laws banning assault weapons, and Connecticut strengthened its preexisting law. Michigan and Minnesota passed red flag laws, requirements for background checks on all gun sales, and secure storage guidelines. On the other hand, states such as Florida, Alabama, Nebraska and North Carolina went the other route, and loosened what in many cases were already very lax gun regulations; most markedly through the introduction of permitless carry in public places and, in North Carolina, the removal of background checks for gun purchases. Minnesota, Arkansas, and Delaware additionally restored the right to own a gun to marijuana users.Everytown For Gun Safety, an organization advocating for stricter firearm regulation, published an annual ranking of each state in terms of gun law strength versus gun violence rate. The states that have passed more stringent measures are consistently at the top of the list, while those who have lax measures and/or have loosened them further are at the bottom. Their statistical analysis highlights a correlation between stringency of gun control laws and the actual number of deaths from gun violence. However, critics (such as National Rifle Association spokespeople) claim that this list is biased, for the highest states ranked are exclusively those with strong gun control laws, or contend that a mix of factors could help boost the low rates of gun violence aside from the laws themselves. However, Everytown’s “national leaders”-California, New York, Illinois, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Maryland–are nearly identical to the list of states with the least amount of gun deaths per capita according to the CDC’s 2021 report. 

Policy Proposals

In the wake of increasing mass shootings in the U.S., many groups advocate for systematic change to the culture of gun violence in the U.S. through varying policy proposals. Some proposals contain legislation that decreases gun ownership and general firearm access, while many seek to incorporate more background checks before citizens are able to access firearms. The most recent prominent legislation comes from the Biden administration’s Executive Order to reduce gun violence. This comprehensive plan includes the increase of background checks, improving public awareness and “red flag” orders, holding the gun industry accountable through “more information regarding federally licensed firearms dealers who are violating the law,” to name a few. This plan mirrors the advocacy of many gun control groups such as Everytown for Gun Safety and Sandy Hook Promise, both supporters of more strict gun violence legislation to prevent further harm to U.S. citizens. Everytown for Gun Safety also recommends all states to start with five foundational laws: background checks, Extreme Risk laws, secure gun storage requirements, rejecting permitless carry laws, and Stand Your Ground laws. These laws mirror some of the policies practiced by few states in the U.S., including California, New York and Illinois.Other advocates of these more strict policies pertaining to gun control include 86% of Democrats, but only 28% of Republicans. These partisan differences pose difficulty to passing gun control legislation, even if the legislation has broad public appeal. This public appeal rises with the increase in more policy proposals relating to gun control, with a Gallup poll reporting that 56% of U.S. adults advocate that gun control laws should be stricter. This number increases directly after major shootings, such as the Uvalde, Texas school shooting, where the percentage rose to 66% in June 2022. As gun violence has increased in recent years, many Americans demand action through legislation for a comprehensive program that increases gun control to save the lives of many affected.

Acknowledgment

The Institute for Youth in Policy wishes to acknowledge Michelle Liou, Nolan Ezzet, and other contributors for developing and maintaining the Policy Department within the Institute.

References

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Yancey-Bragg, N'dea. 2024. “2024 gun laws: From California to Michigan, where things changed.” USA Today. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/01/09/gun-laws-2024-ranking/72085972007/.