Carper Applauds Senate Passage of Gun Safety Legislation

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tom Carper (D-Del.) released the following statement after the Senate voted in favor of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act — a commonsense gun safety bill to end the nearly three decades-long congressional gridlock on gun legislation:

“I was proud to join the majority of my colleagues today to break the nearly thirty years of Congressional inaction to finally pass long overdue, commonsense gun reforms. The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act will strengthen background checks, implement red flag laws, and make our schools safer. This legislation reflects ideas that the American public overwhelmingly supports, and most importantly, this legislation will save lives. 

“I’m also pleased that this package includes bipartisan legislation that I’ve worked on for months with my Republican colleagues, Senators Cornyn and Cassidy, to increase access to telehealth and school-based mental health care. Ensuring that schools can provide critical health services for students has been a priority of mine since I served as governor of Delaware, and I’m delighted to have played a part in expanding and enhancing these services nationwide.

“While this bill doesn’t include everything we need to end the epidemic of gun violence, it’s a good start. However, at the very same time that the Senate made progress today, the Supreme Court handed down a decision that will make it harder for states to implement commonsense gun reforms and restrictions. This decision is a historic failure, and makes it clear that our work is far from over. As we continue to work together to address the epidemic of gun violence plaguing our nation, I’m proud of the bipartisan work my colleagues and I achieved today, and hope this legislation makes its way to President Biden’s desk in short order.”

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