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Status of H.R. 218/S.253

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Dear F.O.P. Member,The National Legislative Office continues to receive inquiries by telephone and e-mail, each o­ne wanting to know the status of H.R. 218/S. 253: When will it be voted o­n? What is the hold up? If we have the votes to pass it, why can't we do so right now? I am writing this open letter to all F.O.P. members in an effort to answer these very questions.Frustration: What is the Status of H.R. 218/S.253?Legislative advocacy can be a maddeningly slow process and we understand that our membership, which has worked extremely hard at the grassroots level building support for this bill, is justifiably frustrated. It should not be a surprise that the staff of the National Legislative Office, the members of the National Legislative Committee, and both the Executive and National Boards share this sentiment as well.It is easy to get frustrated, but harder to keep your eye o­n the ball. We cannot allow frustration--no matter how justified--to jeopardize the ultimate goal--which is to get H.R. 218/S. 253 passed into law.

Progress is Being MadeBe assured that this remains the top legislative priority of the Grand Lodge--the National Legislative Office makes phone calls and contacts Members of Congress o­n this issue o­n a regular basis. Executive Director Jim Pasco routinely meets with key Congressional staffers and Administration officials at the highest level o­n this very issue. While it may be difficult to see progress, it does not mean that progress is not being made.We have reached a stage in which the next procedural step for this legislation is a vote o­n the Senate floor. The decision of when to hold this vote is in the hands of the Senate's leadership and their very top staff. We have commitments that this is a bill that will see Senate action--the question is no longer "if," but "when."The Senate Vote: ChallengesHowever, before we can move forward o­n a Senate vote, there are challenges that must be met. We have sixty-six (66) cosponsors o­n the bill--enough to end any filibuster, but not prevent o­ne from occurring, should the opponents of this legislation attempt o­ne. This is a procedural hurdle that must be considered--even an attempt at a filibuster can gum up the process enough that we jeopardize final passage. We must also bear in mind that Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D-MA) circulated seven (7) amendments to our bill when it was considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee. All were designed to weaken it and peel away bipartisan support by making the legislation a "gun bill." Senator Kennedy ultimately offered four (4) of his amendments at the Committee's mark-up, and because of the F.O.P.'s strong lobbying effort and the steadfastness of our Committee allies, all four (4) were successfully defeated. But some of those votes were close and, if our opponents succeed in amending this legislation, the Senate may end up passing a bill which has been so weakened that the F.O.P. cannot support it, or o­ne which will have no chance of passing the House.For this reason, the F.O.P. must work with the leadership and the Senate as a whole in order to get an agreement o­n how the floor vote and debate o­n this measure will proceed. Without such an agreement, we risk our bill being amended by our opponents to be used as a political opportunity or as a vehicle for firearms-related legislation. If our legislation becomes a ?gun bill,? then our chances for passage are considerably lowered. The F.O.P. has forged bipartisan support for our legislation because it is about officer safety and homeland security, but this bipartisan support will quickly divide along ideological lines if miscellaneous firearms provisions become part of the package. When H.R. 218 faced a vote in amendment form o­n the House floor in the summer of 1999, we prevailed in a lopsided, bipartisan vote of 372 to 53. However, the underlying bill was the more controversial H.R. 2122, the ?Mandatory Gun Show Background Check Act,? and it failed o­n a 147-280 vote. We cannot afford to let our bill become the vehicle for pro- or anti-gun measures.In order for the bill the Senate passes to have a chance to succeed in the House, we need to keep the focus o­n the real issue--the benefits this bill provides in terms of both officer safety and homeland security. Because of the active opposition of House Judiciary Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-WI), we must be sure that the bill which passes the Senate is also o­ne that can pass the House. Thus, we are faced with a situation that is not unlike trying to hit two targets with a single bullet--we need to take our time and aim carefully.Next week, the House and Senate will return for votes solely related to the passage of the omnibus appropriations bill, making consideration of any other legislation extremely unlikely. In light of this, we are working to make sure that S. 253 is among the very first bills o­n the Senate's list of priorities for the second session of this Congress.What about Chairman Sensenbrenner?In addition to the numerous questions about the timing of the Senate vote, we are often asked how the continued efforts Chairman Sensenbrenner to kill the legislation will effect either the consideration in the House of H.R. 218, or of S. 253, when the latter is passed by the Senate. The F.O.P. would like to work with the Chairman to resolve our differences o­n this legislation, or at the very least, reach an accommodation by which the bill can come to a fair, up-or-down vote. To date, the Chairman will not allow H.R. 218 to be considered by the Judiciary Committee or any of its Subcommittees. He has this authority and intends to exercise it. However, our conversations with Congressional leadership and Administration officials may lead to greater flexibility o­n the part of the Chairman--which we would certainly welcome. We want to leave no stone unturned in our efforts to pass this legislation.With respect to how the opposition of Chairman Sensenbrenner will affect the House's consideration of S. 253, o­nce that bill is passed by the Senate, we can report that the House leadership is very aware of the importance of this bill to the F.O.P. and we are completely confident that a Senate-passed bill will be considered and passed by the House. Increasing CosponsorshipBecause of the tremendous success of the efforts of F.O.P.'s National Legislative Office and the Grassroots Action Network, it may seem to some that we have hit a ?ceiling? with respect to the number of cosponsors. If we already have a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, which includes every member of the Senate leadership from both sides of the aisle, and almost two hundred and seventy (270) cosponsors in the House, many of our members ask if there is any value in continuing to seek additional cosponsors.The answer is an unqualified yes, for two main reasons. First, by continuing to lobby this issue, we will keep it o­n the Capitol Hill radar screen and maintain our momentum to passage. And, secondly, the more cosponsors we have, the greater the chances that the bill can be considered swiftly without a long and drawn out debate. When floor time is scarce, as it will be in a Presidential election year, bills which have the greatest unanimity have a better chance of being considered--especially in the Senate.The Continuing Role of the Grassroots Action NetworkDuring the Congressional recess, the National Legislative Office will be aggressively lobbying Congressional leadership and their top aides in both chambers o­n H.R. 218/S. 253. We will remain in regular contact with the Senate and House Majority Leader's top staff and with our key Senate allies o­n this issue. The Congressional recess is a tremendous opportunity for our grassroots membership to make contact with those Senators and Representatives who have not yet cosponsored H.R. 218/S. 253. Keep in mind that there are more than o­ne hundred and sixty (160) House Members and thirty-four (34) Senators who are not cosponsors of this bill. And, while we need to go after these additional cosponsors, particularly those who were cosponsors of the bill in previous Congresses and those who voted for the bill o­n the floor of the House in 1999, we should not neglect to thank those who have already cosponsored the bill and have been working with the F.O.P. to get it passed.During the recess, Members of Congress will be in their home State and district offices and will be paying greater attention to input and feedback from their constituents--we urge all F.O.P. members to make the most of this opportunity!This week, our GAN members will be sent a target list of Members of Congress in your State which have not yet signed o­n to H.R. 218/S. 253. We are asking that you call these Members in their district offices and ask that they demonstrate their support for law enforcement by cosponsoring H.R. 218/S. 253.More cosponsors means greater momentum and an increased likelihood of a vote o­n our bill early next year!Every vote counts--make sure your elected officials know where you stand!If you have any questions about this bill or other legislative issues, please feel free to contact me, or the National Legislative Office.Fraternally,Chuck CanterburyNational President