A public health crisis: Lawmakers want scheduled votes for gun violence prevention legislation

Despite the fact gun violence is the leading cause of death for American children, the U.S. House has yet to vote on one single gun violence prevention bill in this Congress.

A group of 110 members of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, led by chair Congressman Mike Thompson of California and joined by Virginia Congresswoman Jennifer McClellan, sent a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy today urging him to schedule votes on gun violence prevention legislation.

“Gun violence is a uniquely American problem, and our children are paying the price for Republicans’ inaction,” McClellan said. “Every time there is a school shooting, my son is terrified to go to school, wondering if his classroom will be next. No child should have to endure that fear and trauma, and no parent should have to worry if their child will come home from school. As the leading cause of death of children in America, it is imperative that Congress takes immediate action to advance commonsense gun reforms to stop this senseless loss of life.”

The last day of scheduled votes in July 2023 was cancelled by House Republicans because of disagreements within the Republican conference about how to proceed on a government funding bill. The letter calls on House Republican Leadership to use that time to vote on life-saving gun violence prevention legislation should the vote schedule fall apart again.

McClellan, a member of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, is a cosponsor of H.R. 1699, the Gun Violence Prevention Act; H.R. 2403, the Enhanced Background Checks Act; H.Res. 459, to designate June as Gun Violence Awareness Month; and H.Res. 348, to declare gun violence a public health crisis.