From the Office of Senator Kerry

Wednesday, February 28, 2001

MR. KERRY. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation, along with Senator DeWine, Senator Boxer, and Senator Kohl, that will set minimum standards for gun safety locks. Discussion is swirling around the U.S. Congress, in state legislatures throughout the country, and in our cities and towns about the use of handgun safety locks to prevent children from gaining access to dangerous weapons. To date, eighteen states have Child Access Protection, or CAP laws in place, which permit prosecution of adults if their firearm is left unsecured and a child uses that firearm to harm themselves or others.

An important element that is largely missing from the debate over the voluntary or required use of gun safety locks is the quality and performance of these locks. Mr. President, a gun lock will only keep a gun out of a child’s hands if the lock works. There are many cheap, flimsy locks on the market that are easily overcome by a child. There are 12 safety standards for every toy, but there is not even a single safety standard for a gun lock.

Earlier this month the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the National Sport Shooting Foundation announced a voluntary recall of 400,000 gun safety locks that were distributed by Project HomeSafe, a nationwide program whose purpose is to promote safe firearms handling and storage practices through distribution of gun locks and safety education messages. And last July the CPSC and MasterLock joined together in another voluntary recall of 752,000 gun locks. Both of the gun locks recalled could be easily opened with paper clips, tweezers, or by banging it on a table. When testing gun locks to replace the recalled locks, the CPSC found that all but two of the 32 locks tested could be opened without a key. Mr. President, I find this astonishing. Millions of Americans have come to depend on gun locks as a way to prevent their children from gaining access to a handgun, and it is extremely disturbing to learn that so many locks could be overcome.

Mr. President, the legislation that we are introducing today requires the Consumer Product Safety Commission to set minimum regulations for safety locks and to remove unsafe locks from the market. Our legislation empowers consumers by ensuring that they will only purchase high-quality lock boxes and trigger locks. The legislation does not require the use of gun safety locks. It only requires that gun safety locks meet minimum standards. The legislation does not regulate handguns. It applies only to after-market, external gun locks.

Storing firearms safety is an effective and inexpensive way to prevent the needless tragedies associated with unintentional firearm-related death and injury. And I am pleased that several states, including my home state of Massachusetts, have required the use of gun safety locks. During the 106th Congress, the Senate passed an amendment that would require the use of gun safety locks by a vote of 78-20.

While I am encouraged by this trend of increasing the use of gun safety locks, I am genuinely concerned that with the hundreds of different types of gun locks on the market today it is difficult – probably impossible – for consumers to be assured that the lock they purchase will be effective. In early February President Bush announced the Administration’s support for a five-year, $75 million-a-year federal program to distribute free gun locks to every gun owner. I commend the President’s proposal to distribute free gun locks, but believe that it is critically important that the locks function as intended.

The latest data released by the Centers for Disease Control in 1999 revealed that accidental shootings accounted for 7 percent of child deaths and that more than 300 children died in gun accidents, almost one child every day. A study in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine found that 25 percent of 3- to 4- year olds and 70 percent of 5- to 6- year olds had sufficient finger strength to fire 59 (or 92 percent) of the 64 commonly available handguns examined in the study. Accidental shootings can be prevented by simple safety measures, one of which is the use of an effective gun safety lock.

The Senate has been gridlocked over the issue of gun control. And you can be sure that young lives have been needlessly lost due to our inaction. This legislation – which I truly believe every Senator can support – would make storing a gun in the home safer by ensuring safety devices are effective. It would empower consumers. And most importantly it would protect children and decrease the numbers of accidental shootings in this country.

Thank you.