Panel Backs 2 Bills to Curb Assault Rifles

Sweeping legislation that would outlaw new assault rifles won an important boost Wednesday as a Senate subcommittee--sidestepping a potential deadlock--voted 5 to 1 to send a pair of competing proposals to full committee for consideration.

Both measures would ban the importation and sale of such well-known military-style rifles as the AK-47, the Uzi carbine and the Colt AR-15, but they differ in the number of other types of guns that would be banned.

Although unable to decide between the two versions, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on the Constitution made clear its determination to ban such weapons and urged the full committee to move quickly to send the legislation to the Senate floor.

Pressure on White House

The overwhelming sentiment behind an assault gun ban puts additional pressure on the White House, which has taken no official position on the issue while a monthlong review has been in progress. The senators urged the Administration to make its position clear but said they were reluctant to postpone action until President Bush makes up his mind.

“Every day we wait, every day we ponder . . . we put at risk the lives of our fellow citizens,” Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) warned.

One of the measures was sponsored by Sen. Dennis DeConcini (D-Ariz.), a lifelong opponent of gun control who told reporters that he had decided to change his position because “this issue demands action.”

“We see this as a major step because of the urgency that this issue brings,” Matthew McCoy, a DeConcini aide, said.

Neither the DeConcini bill nor a broader measure backed by Sen. Howard M. Metzenbaum (D-Ohio) would affect weapons already owned or those used by law enforcement agencies.

But both go far beyond the temporary action already imposed by the Bush Administration, which bars the importation of certain assault weapons until officials can decide whether they generally are used for legitimate sporting purposes.

The proposed legislation would immediately halt the sale of certain foreign- and U.S.-made assault rifles without regard to their use. It would mark a major shift in federal policy, which generally has left rifles unregulated out of concern for the rights of hunters.

“This legislation,” insisted Sen. Paul Simon (D-Ill.), the subcommittee chairman, “will not in any way affect the rights of hunters or responsible citizens.”

The DeConcini bill, which covers nine types of assault weapons, is considerably less far-reaching than Metzenbaum’s, which would cover 25 assault weapons and give the secretary of the Treasury authority to ban other weapons for one year on an emergency basis.

Metzenbaum earlier had backed even more stringent provisions that would have empowered the Treasury secretary to ban weapons permanently and require that currently owned assault weapons be registered with the federal government. Those provisions were dropped to gain more support, however.

But DeConcini and his principal supporter, Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), indicated that they still regard the Metzenbaum measure as too sweeping and said it might hamper hunters who favor certain semiautomatic rifles and shotguns.

Because the subcommittee was divided in its support for the two bills, neither appeared likely to gain a majority. Rather than permit the initiative to become stalled, the panel voted to report both bills to the full committee without saying which it preferred.

Police have contended that semiautomatic weapons, which are equipped with large magazines and other military-style accessories, are favored by drug traffickers and have contributed to outbreaks of violence in a number of major cities.

Public pressure for a ban on the weapons has mounted since early this year, when welder Patrick Purdy used an AK-47 to kill five children and wound 29 others in a Stockton, Calif., schoolyard.

Wednesday, only Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) among members of the subcommittee opposed both measures, voicing concern that any effort to ban assault weapons might easily be expanded to include hunting rifles.

“The only real assault that the so-called assault weapons bills make is on the law-abiding citizen,” Hatch said, calling instead for “tougher anti-crime measures aimed at those who misuse the weapons.”