Orrin Hatch

Mr. HATCH

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that we lay the pending amendment aside so that the distinguished Senator from California may be able to call up a separate amendment, which we will accept.

Mr. HATCH. I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, we are prepared to accept the amendment.

Mr. HATCH. I thank the Chair and suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, the proposal, the Democratic proposal to heavily regulate firearms at gun shows, while well intentioned, is an example of regulatory overkill. First, the proposal would require a law-abiding gun show organizer to notify Federal and State law enforcement prior to holding a gun show, and require substantial recordkeeping and reporting before and after the show. But gun shows are not conducted in a secret black market. They are publicly advertised for weeks in advance in order to generate public participation. Second, the proposal would require individuals to sell through a licensed dealer in order to obtain the background check and other information. While obtaining a background check is a laudable goal, requiring an individual to pay a dealer for the service could be cost prohibitive to a lawful business transaction. So that is a matter of great concern. The Republican proposal provides for a ``special registrant'' at a gun show that any nonlicensed seller can use to conduct a background check on the instant check system. This cost-effective mechanism will prevent any unlawful sales without unduly burdening a lawful transaction with regulatory costs. Thus, I must oppose the amendment to heavily regulate gun shows because it is overly burdensome on law- abiding sellers. I strongly support the amendment filed by my colleague, Senator Craig, which will provide for increased safety and licensing of firearm sales at gun shows. This amendment contains several provisions that will make it more difficult for criminals to purchase firearms at gun shows, but this amendment allows law-abiding citizens to continue to buy and sell legal products. First, the Craig amendment will provide for ``special registrants,'' who may conduct background checks for individual sellers at a gun show using the instant check system. These checks will prevent criminals from purchasing a firearm from another individual, an unlicensed seller at a gun show. It will also provide an inexpensive and efficient means to facilitate the lawful sale of a firearm by one individual to another. Second, this amendment will provide for special licenses for persons who want to buy and sell guns primarily or solely at gun shows. This will allow occasional sellers, such as gunsmiths, to avoid the expense and regulation of becoming full-fledged Federal firearms licensees. Third, the Craig amendment will prohibit Federal and State law enforcement officials from charging a fee to conduct a background check on the instant check system. This would reduce the cost of criminal background checks to individuals. Fourth, the Craig amendment would encourage the use of the instant check system by granting civil liability protection to those who use it at gun shows. Given the litigation climate we are currently experiencing, this will be a strong incentive to use the ``special registrant'' provision of this amendment. In short, this amendment will promote background checks on sales by nonlicensed individuals at gun shows without an undue financial burden. It will prevent crime without punishing law-abiding citizens. So, accordingly, I do believe this amendment deserves support. I respect the distinguished Senator from Idaho. In fact, I respect both Senators on the Democrat side and the Senator from Idaho for trying to resolve these difficult problems. But I do believe that the amendment of the Senator from Idaho resolves this problem in a more fair and reasonable manner while accomplishing just as much as the distinguished Senator from New Jersey is trying to do with his amendment. I yield the floor.

Mr. HATCH. I prefer to get these two amendments over with so we can move on to the next amendment. We do have one or two others that are going to come up today. I think we have covered it pretty well on both sides.

Mr. HATCH. With the permission of Senator Craig, I ask unanimous consent that the distinguished Senator from Arizona be given 7 minutes to offer his amendment, speak to it, and, as I understand, he is going to withdraw the amendment at the end.

Mr. HATCH. The Senator's time would not come out of the time of the Senator from Idaho.

Mr. HATCH. I compliment the distinguished Senator from Arizona for his leadership on this issue and for the work that he has done to help pass this bill. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the previously stacked votes be delayed to begin at 4:30 this afternoon. We have three so far lined up. And further, following the debate outlined in the previous consent, Senator Thompson be recognized for up to 20 minutes for general debate on the bill, and then Senator Kennedy for 10 minutes and then Senator Leahy for 5 minutes. I further ask that following the votes, Senator Hollings be recognized to offer an amendment regarding TV violence limited to 3 hours equally divided prior to a motion to table, with no amendments in order prior to that vote.

Mr. HATCH. Right.

Mr. HATCH. Following Senator Kennedy. Now, also if we have enough time left over after Senator Leahy speaks, I ask unanimous consent that we can work on a Republican amendment before the votes, too, so we can at least have one more. We will try to work that out between the two managers on the floor. We will begin with Senator Thompson for 20 minutes, Kennedy for 10, and Leahy for 5, and then we will see where we can go.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, we now have 25 minutes left. There are a few people who would still like to speak, especially the distinguished Senator from Alabama, in response to Senator Kennedy and his conclusions. I ask unanimous consent to yield 3 minutes to the distinguished Senator from Alabama, and then immediately thereafter call up the Hatch-Leahy Internet screening amendment.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I send an amendment to the desk and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I move to table the Lautenberg amendment.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I am honored to have my colleague work with me on this. It always makes me feel good when we work together on these matters. This is an important issue, and since one ISP, or Internet service provider, already provides these services as a matter of course, it seems to us it is not asking too much for others to do so. If they do not want to do it without cost, then they should not charge more than what the actual costs are, which is what this amendment does. Do we have the yeas and nays on this amendment, Mr. President?

Mr. HATCH. I ask unanimous consent that this amendment be put over and set aside until tomorrow morning, to be voted on at 9:40 in the morning with at least 6 minutes divided equally between the Senator from Vermont and the Senator from Utah for final debate.

Mr. HATCH. As I understand it, we are coming in at 9:30 a.m., so we have allowed for the prayer and 6 minutes for the distinguished Senator from Vermont and the Senator from Utah. Of course, if the majority leader wants to change the times--I understand the 9:30 time is all right with the majority leader, but if he wants to change it, we will be glad to do that. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I see the distinguished Senator from Kansas is here. I understand he is prepared to go forward. There is 5 minutes to be equally divided between him and whoever decides to speak on the minority side. I suggest we go ahead and be prepared to vote.

Mr. HATCH. I ask unanimous consent that we proceed at this time on the three amendments and the three votes, with the 5 minutes equally divided for each one.

Mr. HATCH. Will either side object to yielding back the time so everybody can vote? Mr. CRAIG addressed the Chair.

Mr. HATCH. In light of this agreement, there will be no further votes today. The first vote tomorrow will be at 9:40 a.m.