Washington: The Obama administration announced new steps on Thursday on gun control, curbing the import of military surplus weapons and proposing to close a loophole that lets felons and others circumvent background checks by registering guns to corporations.
The administration has failed to find support in Congress for its gun control proposals this year. The issue became a top one for President Barack Obama after a gunman killed 20 young children and six adults at a Connecticut school in December.
Obama has added two more executive actions to a list of 23 steps the White House determined Obama could take on his own to reduce gun violence.
Vice President Joe Biden unveiled the new actions today at the White House.
One new policy will end a government practice that lets military weapons, sold or donated by the US to allies, be re-imported into the US by private entities, where some may end up on the streets.
The White House said the US has approved 250,000 of those guns to be re-imported since 2005. Under the new policy, only museums and a few other entities like the government will be eligible to re-import military-grade firearms.
The Obama administration is also proposing a federal rule to stop those who would be ineligible to pass a background check from getting around the law by registering a gun to a corporation or trust.
The new rule would require people associated with those entities, like beneficiaries and trustees, to undergo the same type of fingerprint-based background checks as individuals if they want to register guns.
PTI
