Closing the Gun Show Loophole

Recently, Third Way released a memo on US-Mexico security cooperation that recommended closing the gun show loophole as one way of reducing the flow of weapons to drug syndicates across the border. This memo provides background on the policy of closing the gun show loophole, which Third Way’s predecessor organization, Americans for Gun Safety, long championed.

Under current federal law, any person who buys a firearm from a licensed gun dealer at a gun show must first pass a background check. However, if that person buys a gun from an unlicensed seller at a gun show, no backgroundcheck is required. That is what is known as the gun show loophole.

This memo outlines the key reasons that closing the gun show loophole is a moderate, common-sense policy, and one that is crucial to keeping our nation safe. Requiring criminal background checks at gun shows would respect the rights of gun enthusiasts who buy and sell at gun shows and close a dangerous loophole that has allowed criminals and terrorists to evade background checks when purchasing weapons. And it bridges the gap between the two polar sides of the gun debate—one side that fears onerous regulations will put gun shows out of business and the other side which is concerned that totally unregulated gun shows contribute to gun violence.

• Closing the gun show loophole has broad, bipartisan support. A recent survey by Republican pollster Frank Luntz found that 69% of NRA members and 86% of non-NRA gun owners support background checks for all gun sales at gun shows. In fact, the last time Congress considered requiring background checks at guns shows, the legislation was authored by Republican Senator John McCain and passed the Senate with eight GOP votes.
• Terrorists and criminals have been exploiting the loophole to purchase weapons. According to the NRA, hundreds of thousands of firearms are sold at gun shows each year without background checks. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives says that gun shows are the second leading source of firearms recovered in illegal gun trafficking investigations. And there have been at least three occasions where suspected terrorists exploited this loophole to acquire firearms—including one suspected al-Qaeda member. Guns purchased in the U.S. also comprise about 80% of the firearms used by Mexican drug syndicates, and a recent government study identified the gun show loophole as one of the “key challenges” in stopping the flow of weapons to gangs and drug lords in Mexico.
• Closing the loophole would simply level the playing field. Under current law, licensed firearms dealers already must perform background checks at gun shows, but unlicensed sellers are not required to do so. Mandating background checks for any firearms purchase from a gun show vendor—whether they have a license to sell or not—would simply apply the current rules in a more uniform and evenhanded way. And for licensed dealers, there would be no change in the law regarding background checks.
• Requiring background checks at guns shows would not overly burden buyers or sellers. Every year, instant check becomes more instant and accurate. Currently, most background checks take less than two minutes. And under federal law, the FBI has 3 business days to make a determination before the dealer is permitted to transfer the firearm to the buyer—whether the check is completed or not.
• Closing the gun show loophole has no adverse impact on gun shows. Eighteen states have passed their own laws requiring that unlicensed sellers perform background checks at gun shows, and those laws have had no impact on the frequency or size of guns shows in those states.
• Americans are supportive of the Second Amendment, but they overwhelmingly believe that right allows for restrictions. Only 14% of Americans are Second Amendment absolutists—believing that the right allows for no restrictions on firearms sales and possession. Seventy-four percent believe that the Second Amendment allows for reasonable restrictions intended to keep guns out of the hands of children, criminals, and terrorists.
• Closing the gun show loophole is constitutional. Recent Supreme Court decisions in District of Columbia v. Heller and McDonald v. Chicago have made clear that laws requiring background checks fall well within the bounds of the Second Amendment.