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Years of frustration over congressional inaction on gun violence finally boiled over onto the floors of Congress when Senator Chris Murphy led a 15-hour filibuster, resulting in Senate floor votes on measures to require background checks for all gun sales and to prohibit terrorists from purchasing firearms. Then, on June 22, Representative John Lewis led a 25-hour sit-in on the House floor demanding a vote on the same policies—background checks and closing the terror gap.

Though efforts by these courageous leaders have not yet resulted in new laws, their renewed commitment is heartening and underscores the urgency to pass smart gun laws at the state level. Momentum to break the gun lobby’s stranglehold over our nation’s firearms policy has been building since the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary in 2012 and continues to grow stronger—at least 138 new smart gun laws have been enacted in 42 states since Newtown.

This year has proven no different. The increasingly familiar pattern of progress on state gun legislation has continued in 2016, with lawmakers achieving critical victories in areas like background checks, domestic violence, mental health reform, and more. The Law Center's legal experts have tracked 1455 bills in 2016 so far, with more to come in states whose legislative sessions stretch into the fall.

Gun safety advocates have also achieved a flurry of defensive victories, action that has increased dramatically in the past few years, demonstrating the wide public support for commonsense gun laws and the diminished power of the gun lobby. This special edition of Gun Law Trendwatch highlights the key victories and milestones in state gun legislation so far this year.

http://smartgunlaws.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Trendwatch-Mid-Year-2016-FINAL-copy.pdf

Note: see the PDF for details of these important victories.