White House releases study on how to spur smart-gun tech
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A proposed rule will help ensure
appropriate information is reported about individuals prohibited from
buying a gun for mental health reasons
The White House today released
the findings from a study by the Defense, Justice and Homeland Security
Departments on ways to spur the development of smart-gun technology,
which restricts who can fire a weapon.
Smart-gun technology uses RFID chips or biometrics, such as a
fingerprint scanner or grip recognition, to release a locking mechanism
on a weapon. The technology was initially developed to prevent police
officers' weapons from being grabbed in a struggle and used against
them. The military has also expressed interest in the technology for the
same reason.
For two decades, smart-gun technology has advanced in fits and starts as
wary investors kept purse strings tight and gun rights proponents at
times fought its uptake.
Then, in January, President Obama directed the federal government to conduct or sponsor research into gun safety technology, along with ways to promote it.
"If we can set it up so you can't unlock your phone unless you've got
the right fingerprint, why can't we do the same thing for our guns? If a
child can't open a bottle of aspirin, we should make sure that they
can't pull a trigger on a gun," Obama said in January.
Obama also instructed various defense and law enforcement agencies to
"review the availability of smart-gun technology on a regular basis, and
to explore potential ways to further its use and development to more
broadly improve gun safety."
He also commissioned a study by the various defense and law enforcement agencies on the state of the technology.
The study, Report to the President Outlining a Strategy to Expedite Deployment of Gun Safety Technology, stated that smart-gun technology "holds great promise."
"By incorporating electronic systems into a firearm's design,
manufacturers can give gun owners greater control over how a weapon is
used, both by limiting who can fire the gun ("user-authorization
technology") and by making a gun easier to retrieve if it is lost or
stolen ("electronic recovery technology")," the report stated.
Additionally, the DOJ and DHS have begun a process to define, for the
first time, the requirements that manufacturers would need to meet for
federal, state, and municipal law enforcement agencies to consider
purchasing firearms with enhanced safety technology. They've committed
to completing that process by October, and will also identify agencies
interested in taking part in a pilot program to develop the technology.
The report also stated that through the DOJ, state and local governments
can apply certain federal grants to the purchase of new firearms,
including those equipped with advanced safety technology.
"Together, these actions have the potential to jumpstart the development
of proven gun safety technologies that can save lives and preserve the
effectiveness of our firearms. There is no problem that America's
innovators cannot solve, and we are confident that by focusing the
private sector's attention on smart-gun technology, we will unlock
life-saving innovations," Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to the
president for intergovernmental affairs and public engagement, stated in
a news release.
Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), a proponent of smart-gun technology, applauded the study and its call for action.
"Smart guns are smart gun safety policy," Markey said in a statement.
"By unleashing the power of American research and innovation, we can
literally keep guns out of the hands of those who should not have them
and give law enforcement the tools they need to keep communities safer
from gun violence. Smart-gun technology has the potential to save lives,
especially those killed accidentally by guns."
Last year, Senator Markey and Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) introduced The Handgun Trigger Safety Act,
legislation that would support the use of personalization (or
smart-gun) technology that allows the purchaser of a gun to designate
authorized user(s) who can operate the gun and would make the gun
inoperable for all others.
A recent Johns Hopkins survey found that six in 10 Americans want safer guns.
"This announcement gets us closer as a society to giving consumers the
choice for reliable, proven and affordable personalized firearms
technology," said Margot Hirsch, president of the Tech Challenge
Foundation, an organization that promotes innovation in smart-gun
technology for safer communities.
In 2013, the Tech Challenge Foundation, created by a group of Silicon
Valley entrepeneurs, sponsored a $1 million "Smart Tech for Firearms
Challenge," which resulted in the funding of 15 smart-gun innovators.
The new report stated that the DOD will continue to help manufacturers
test "smart" firearms under real-world conditions at the U.S. Army
Aberdeen Test Center in Maryland. Manufacturers would be eligible to
win cash prizes through that program as well.
"The federal government stands ready to assist state and local
governments as smart gun technology continues to be developed," Jarrett
said. "This effort presents a unique opportunity for law enforcement
agencies to improve their own operations and encourage the development
of advanced gun safety technology."
Mental health and guns
In January, Obama also called for a new $500 million investment in
mental health treatment and underscored the increased mental health
coverage that the Affordable Care Act has made possible.
The study stated the Social Security Administration (SSA) is now moving
forward with one aspect of that effort by publishing a proposed rule to
help ensure appropriate information in its records is reported to the
background check system about individuals prohibited from buying a gun.
The rule would also provide a way for people to seek relief from the
federal prohibitions on possessing a firearm for reasons related to
mental health.
This is just the first step in the rulemaking process. Once the rule
publishes in the Federal Register, the public has 60 days to comment on
the proposal to ensure the SSA can incorporate feedback from a broad
range of stakeholders before finalizing the rule.
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Next month, the White House will host a 50-state Gun Violence Prevention
convention that will bring together state and local elected officials
-- including governors, attorneys general, state legislators, and city
and county officials -- who have been leaders in the fight to save lives
from gun violence.
The agenda will focus on state and local efforts to prevent gun violence
through legislative and executive actions, including those focused on
reducing gun violence in domestic abuse incidents and furthering
research and development of smart-gun technologies.
Convention participants will also have an opportunity to discuss ways
states can improve their reporting to the background check system,
particularly in light of new data recently released by DOJ about the
number of records each state has submitted to a key national database.
"The actions the administration takes will help make our communities
safer and keep more guns out of the hands of folks who shouldn't have
them," Jarrett said. "That is just common sense."
This story, "White House releases study on how to spur smart-gun tech" was originally published by
Computerworld.
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