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Rep. Sherrill Urges Senate Action on Background Check Legislation 575 Days After House Passage

September 24, 2020

Washington, DC -- Today marks 575 days since the House of Representatives passed the landmark Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019 (H.R. 8), which would require universal background checks for gun purchases. Representative Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11), a U.S. Navy veteran and former federal prosecutor, marked the anniversary by renewing her call for the Senate to take up H.R. 8 and join the overwhelming majority of Americans who want background checks for gun purchases nationwide.

"From background checks to pandemic relief, Senator Mitch McConnell continues to ignore the will, health, and livelihood of the American people," said Rep. Sherrill. "It is absolutely shameful that 575 days have passed since the House sent this common sense legislation to the Senate."

According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have already been 446 mass shootings in the U.S. this year, more than during all of 2019.

Representative Sherrill is a former Navy helicopter pilot and former federal prosecutor. She qualified as an expert shot in the rifle and pistol in the U.S. Navy and as a federal prosecutor worked to keep illegal guns off the streets of New Jersey. H.R. 8 was the first bill Representative Sherrill co-sponsored as a Member of Congress.

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