Regular Session 2017-2018 House Resolution 0837 P.N. 3342

PRINTER'S NO. 3342

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE RESOLUTION

No.

837

Session of

2018

INTRODUCED BY GAINEY, DAVIS, DEAN, STEPHENS, MURT, SCHLOSSBERG,

A. DAVIS, KINSEY, MENTZER, FRANKEL, WHEATLEY, P. COSTA,

NEILSON, YOUNGBLOOD, KIRKLAND, DRISCOLL, HILL-EVANS,

CALTAGIRONE, WATSON AND DONATUCCI, APRIL 16, 2018

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, APRIL 16, 2018

A RESOLUTION

Directing the Joint State Government Commission to establish an

advisory committee to conduct a study on gun violence as a

public health crisis and issue a report of its findings and

recommendations to the House of Representatives.

WHEREAS, Gun violence is more prevalent in the United States

than almost any other nation on earth; and

WHEREAS, Every day in the United States, more than 400

individuals are killed or injured by a firearm, amounting to

approximately one individual every three and one-half minutes;

and

WHEREAS, The gun homicide rate in the United States is 25

times higher than in other developed nations; and

WHEREAS, The firearm homicide rate in the United States is

approximately 43 times higher for individuals who are 15 to 24

years of age than in other developed nations; and

WHEREAS, The rate of unintentional firearm deaths is 6.2

times higher in the United States than in other developed

nations; and

WHEREAS, According to the American Public Health Association

(APHA), gun violence in the United States took the lives of

approximately 33,000 Americans in 2016, and, in addition,

approximately 85,000 other Americans sustained injuries from

firearms; and

WHEREAS, In 2016, gun violence cost the United States

approximately $229 billion, including health care, law

enforcement, insurance, employment and other costs; and

WHEREAS, In the Federal Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations

Bill for Fiscal Year 1997, the Dickey amendment required that

"none of the funds made available for injury prevention and

control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may be

used to advocate or promote gun control"; and

WHEREAS, The Dickey amendment has prevented the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) from researching gun

violence as it would normally research an epidemic with the same

threat to public health, safety and welfare as gun violence; and

WHEREAS, Under the Dickey amendment, the Congress of the

United States also redirected $2.6 million from the CDC's

budget, the amount of money that the CDC had invested in firearm

injury research during the previous year; and

WHEREAS, A number of organizations have proposed repeal of

the Dickey amendment and treating gun violence as a public

health crisis, but these proposals have not been successful at

the Federal level; and

WHEREAS, Since 1996, the CDC's funding for firearm injury

prevention has decreased 96% to $100,000 out of the total CDC

budget of $5.6 billion; and

WHEREAS, In 2012, former United States Representative Jay

Dickey, the author of the Dickey amendment, announced that he

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had changed his mind and now opposes his own amendment, stating

that:

We are in strong agreement now that scientific research

should be conducted into preventing firearm injuries and

that ways to prevent firearm deaths can be found without

encroaching on the rights of legitimate gun owners. The

same evidence-based approach that is saving millions of

lives from motor-vehicle crashes, as well as from

smoking, cancer and HIV/AIDS, can help reduce the toll of

deaths and injuries from gun violence;

and

WHEREAS, The APHA suggests that, similar to how public health

officials investigate a communicable disease, researchers should

investigate the underlying causes of the gun violence epidemic,

how it is transmitted and what potential remedies exist; and

WHEREAS, In 2015, a group of eight national health

professional organizations and the American Bar Association

(ABA) advocated a series of policies to reduce the public health

consequences of firearms, including:

universal background checks of gun purchasers,

elimination of physician 'gag' laws, restricting the

manufacture and sale of military-style assault weapons

and large-capacity magazines for civilian use and

research to support strategies for reducing firearm-

related injuries and death;

and

WHEREAS, The health professional organizations also

recommended improved monetary assistance for mental health

services; and

WHEREAS, The ABA concluded that none of these recommendations

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for reducing gun violence conflict with the Second Amendment of

the Constitution of the United States; and

WHEREAS, Millions of guns are sold every year in "no

questions asked" transactions; and

WHEREAS, It is estimated that 40% of guns sold in the United

States are sold without a meaningful background check; and

WHEREAS, Violent behavior due to a mental health disorder

accounts for only about 4% to 5% of gun violence; and

WHEREAS, More than 60% of all firearm deaths are suicides;

and

WHEREAS, African Americans are nearly 15 times more likely to

die from gun violence than white Americans; and

WHEREAS, A person is killed with a gun every six hours in

this Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, Approximately 79% of all victims of gun homicides in

this Commonwealth are Hispanic or African American; and

WHEREAS, While African Americans comprise just under 12% of

the population in this Commonwealth, they account for more than

69% of gun homicide victims in this Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, These statistics indicate that gun violence is a

threat to public health and safety in communities of color; and

WHEREAS, In schools from Columbine, 1999, to Virginia Tech,

2007, to Sandy Hook, 2012, to Parkland, 2018, and other school

shootings nationwide since Columbine, the lives of hundreds of

students and school employees have been lost to the epidemic of

gun violence; and

WHEREAS, According to a 2017 article in the journal

Pediatrics, nearly 1,300 children from 0 to 17 years of age

across the United States die from shootings annually, and 5,790

are treated for gunshot wounds; and

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WHEREAS, Schools in this Commonwealth nationwide remain

vulnerable to gun violence; and

WHEREAS, From 2005 to 2014, this Commonwealth had the fifth

highest number of assaults with a firearm against a police

officer per capita; and

WHEREAS, In this Commonwealth on average, a police officer is

assaulted with a firearm every two days; and

WHEREAS, Currently in this Commonwealth, gun-related deaths

exceed vehicle-related deaths every year; and

WHEREAS, From 2012 to 2014, this Commonwealth ranked eighth

for the highest number of guns exported to other states and

recovered in a crime scene; and

WHEREAS, From 2012 to 2014, a total of 5,844 guns sold in

Pennsylvania were used in crimes in surrounding states;

therefore be it

RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives direct the Joint

State Government Commission to establish an advisory committee

to conduct a study on gun violence as a public health crisis and

issue a report of its findings and recommendations to the House

of Representatives; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission

establish an advisory committee consisting of approximately 17

members, including representatives of the following:

(1) the Office of Homeland Security of the Commonwealth;

(2) the Department of Education;

(3) the Department of Health;

(4) the Department of Human Services;

(5) the Pennsylvania State Police;

(6) the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and

Delinquency;

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(7) the Office of Attorney General; and

(8) other agencies, organizations or entities that are

knowledgeable of the issues surrounding gun violence and its

causes and effects on public health and safety, including

representatives who are experienced in the areas of health

care, law enforcement and criminal justice;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission consult

with other departments, agencies, organizations, entities or

persons, as necessary or appropriate, in seeking further input

and information under this resolution; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the report of the Joint State Government

Commission contain the following:

(1) findings and recommendations relating to:

(i) the background information and data described in

this resolution;

(ii) the causes and prevalence of gun violence in

this Commonwealth and throughout the United States; and

(iii) intervention and prevention techniques

proposed, considered or implemented nationwide;

(2) any proposed legislation to reduce gun violence in

this Commonwealth; and

(3) any other data or information determined to be

necessary or appropriate;

and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Joint State Government Commission issue

its report within one year of the adoption of this resolution.

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