Pennsylvania House Passes Bill to Expand Background Checks, Fails to Prohibit Ghost Guns or Pass an Extreme Risk Law

HARRISBURG, P.A. - Today, the Pennsylvania chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety's grassroots network, issued the following statements after House lawmakers failed to pass two critical gun safety bills, missing a major opportunity to reduce gun violence in the state.

• House Bill 1099 would have given Pennsylvania's law enforcement officials the tools that they need to restrict the sale of ghost guns - homemade firearm kits that allow a person to purchase an unserialized, unfinished frame or receiver without a background check and convert it into a working firearm.
• House Bill 1859 would have established an Extreme Risk Law in Pennsylvania, allowing family members and law enforcement to temporarily remove firearms from individuals who are deemed to pose a significant risk to themselves or others.

Both bills successfully passed the House last year, making their failure this session all the more disappointing. While House Bill 1593, which requires background checks for all guns including long guns, passed with bipartisan support, the inability to move HB 1099 and HB 1859 forward leaves dangerous loopholes open and families unprotected.

"While we are grateful that lawmakers passed a bill to expand background checks, today's vote is a stark reminder that much more work remains to keep Pennsylvanians safe," said Maura Condon Umble, a volunteer with the Pennsylvania chapter of Moms Demand Action. "The failure to pass laws prohibiting ghost guns and establishing an Extreme Risk law leaves dangerous loopholes open, putting our children at risk. These commonsense measures could prevent tragedies. It's time for Senate lawmakers to act, pass HB 1593, and work with us to end this crisis."

"Passing some of these gun safety bills is a start, but it's far from enough," said Larren Wells, a volunteer with the University of Pittsburgh chapter of Students Demand Action. "Young people across Pennsylvania are growing up in a world where gun violence is a daily reality, and lawmakers cannot stop halfway. We need complete solutions that give everyone the tools and protections they deserve."

On Monday, volunteers with Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action held the "For the 56%" event to raise awareness about the risks of firearm suicide, which is the leading cause of gun death in Pennsylvania, accounting for 56 percent of all firearm related fatalities in the state. Gun safety advocates and firearm suicide survivors called on lawmakers to pass HB 1859, underscoring how urgently resources like Extreme Risk laws are needed to help prevent tragedy before they happen. This failure to progress gun safety legislation leaves too many Pennsylvanians vulnerable and delays critical tools that families and law enforcement need to prevent firearm suicides and save lives.

In an average year, 1,789 people die by guns in Pennsylvania and another 4,020 are wounded. 56% of gun deaths in Pennsylvania are by gun suicide. Gun violence costs Pennsylvania $21.7 billion each year, of which $470.7 million is paid by taxpayers. More information about gun violence in Pennsylvania is available here.