2013-28124 Resolution RESOLUTION NO. 2013-28124
A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF THE
CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, URGING THE UNITED STATES
CONGRESS TO BAN THE SALE AND POSSESSION OF SEMI-
AUTOMATIC ASSAULT WEAPONS AND HIGH CAPACITY
AMMUNITION DEVICES AND MAGAZINES AND TO CLOSE THE
"GUN SHOW LOOPHOLE" NATIONWIDE; URGING THE FLORIDA
LEGISLATURE TO ACT STATEWIDE TO REQUIRE PRIVATE SALES
OF FIREARMS TO INCLUDE A MANDATORY BACKGROUND CHECK
OF A PURCHASER OF A FIREARM REGARDLESS OF WHETHER
THE FIREARM VENDOR IS LICENSED OR NON-LICENSED
PURSUANT TO FEDERAL OR STATE LAW; AND GIVING DIRECTION
TO THE CITY MANAGER WITH REGARD TO THE ENFORCEMENT OF
GUN LAWS WITHIN THE CITY.
WHEREAS, gun violence is a pervasive, national problem that is exacerbated by the
availability of semi-automatic assault weapons at gun shows, flea markets, and other organized
events; and
WHEREAS, the drafters of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution
never envisioned automatic or semi-automatic weapons when the right to bear arms was first
conceived; and
WHEREAS, one of the principal goals of the United States Constitution, as set forth in its
preamble, is "to insure domestic Tranquility"; and
WHEREAS, the United States Supreme Court has long upheld prohibitions and
restrictions on firearms possession that are consistent with the Second Amendment,
notwithstanding the fact that the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to possess a
firearm unconnected to service in a militia; and
WHEREAS, the proliferation of automatic and semi-automatic weapons, as well as high
capacity ammunition devices and magazines, presents a growing problem to law enforcement
and to this nation's domestic tranquility; and
WHEREAS, due to the detrimental and unnecessary presence of military assault
weapons in our day-to-day society, the United States Congress is urged to ban the sale and
possession of semi-automatic assault weapons, as well as high capacity ammunition devices
and magazines; and
WHEREAS, approximately 33 states have no requirement that private sales of firearms
by a vendor without a federal firearm license (a "non-licensed vendor") include any kind of
background check of the purchaser, and such sales occur regularly at gun shows, flea markets,
and other events throughout the country, including in the State of Florida; and
WHEREAS, Florida has no uniform requirement for background checks when firearms
are purchased at gun shows or any other private sale where the vendor is a non-licensed
vendor of firearms; and
WHEREAS, over 5,000 gun shows are held annually across the United States, attracting
thousands of attendees per show and hundreds of Federal firearms licensees and non-licensed
vendors; and
WHEREAS, gun shows, as well as flea markets and other organized events at which a
large number of firearms are offered for sale by federal firearms licensees and non-licensed
vendors, form a significant part of the national firearms market; and
WHEREAS, at gun shows, flea markets, and other organized events at which guns are
exhibited or offered for sale or exchange, criminals and others prohibited from owning firearms
obtain guns without background checks and frequently use guns, whose ownership cannot be
traced, to later commit crimes; and
WHEREAS, since the enactment of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (Public
Law 103-59; 107 Stat. 1536) in 1993, over 100,000,000 background checks have been
performed by federal firearms licensees, denying guns to more than 1,600,000 illegal buyers;
and
WHEREAS, non-licensed vendors at gun shows, flea markets, and other organized
events are not required to perform background checks, thereby allowing potentially prohibited
persons to avoid background checks in order to purchase firearms; and
WHEREAS, the United States Congress has the power, under the Interstate Commerce
Clause and other provisions of the Constitution of the United States, to require background
checks to ensure that criminals and other prohibited persons do not obtain firearms at gun
shows, flea markets, and other organized events in order to close the "Gun Show Loophole";
and
WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature has the authority to require, by statute, that any non-
licensed vendors be required to conduct the same background check of the purchaser as
currently required for licensed vendors; and
WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature is also urged to pass legislation closing the "Gun
Show Loophole" by requiring background checks for purchasers of firearms regardless of
whether the seller is a licensed or non-licensed vendor of firearms; and
WHEREAS, the City Clerk is directed to transmit a certified copy of this Resolution to the
members of the Miami-Dade County Congressional Delegation, Governor Rick Scott, the
Florida Senate President, the Florida House Speaker, the Chair and Members of the Miami-
Dade State Legislative Delegation, and to the United States Senate President and the Speaker
of the House of Representatives, as well as to the City of Miami Beach's lobbyists in
Washington, D.C.; and
WHEREAS, in order to address concerns relative to illegal weapons within the City of
Miami Beach, the City Manager, working closely with the Chief of Police and other relevant City
Departments, shall take active steps to ensure that visitors coming to Miami Beach on major
event periods do not bring illegal guns into the City. Furthermore, the City Manager shall work
closely with the State Attorney's Office for South Florida to prosecute gun owners deemed
prosecutable by the Miami Beach Chief of Police and shall publish records showing the number
of arrests made for carrying illegal weapons in the City and the final legal disposition of each
case.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT DULY RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY
COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, that the United States Congress is
hereby urged to ban the sale and possession of semi-automatic assault weapons and high
capacity ammunition devices and magazines, and to pass legislation closing the "Gun Show
Loophole" nationwide; that the Florida Legislature is hereby urged to pass statewide legislation
requiring background checks for purchasers of firearms at gun shows, flea markets, and other
organized events, regardless of whether the seller is a licensed or non-licensed vendor of
firearms; and direction is hereby given to the City Manager with regard to the enforcement of
gun laws within the City as set forth herein.
PASSED and ADOPTED this day of January, 2013.
ATTEST:
att* errera Bower
3 Mayor
Rafael E. Granado, City
APPROVED AS TO
FORM& GU AGE
FOR
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F:\ATTO\TURN\RESOS\Gun Show Loophole and Sale and Possession of Semi Automatic Assault Weapons.docx
MIAMI BEACH
JOSE SMITH, CITY ATTORNEY
OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY COMMISSION MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor Matti Herrera Bower
Members of the City Commission
CC: Kathie Brooks, Interim C° anager
FROM: Jose Smith, City Attorn
DATE. January 16, 2013
SUBJECT: A RESOLUTION OF THE MAYOR AND CITY COMMISSION OF
THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH, FLORIDA, URGING THE UNITED
STATES CONGRESS TO BAN THE SALE AND POSSESSION OF
SEMI-AUTOMATIC AND ASSAULT WEAPONS AND HIGH
CAPACITY AMMUNITION DEVICES AND MAGAZINES AND TO
CLOSE THE "GUN SHOW LOOPHOLE" NATIONWIDE AND, IN
ADDITION, URGING THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE TO ACT
STATEWIDE TO REQUIRE PRIVATE SALES OF FIREARMS TO
INCLUDE A MANDATORY BACKGROUND CHECK OF A
PURCHASER OF A FIREARM REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THE
FIREARM VENDOR IS LICENSED OR NON-LICENSED
PURSUANT TO FEDERAL OR STATE LAW.
Pursuant to the request of Vice-Mayor Michael Gongora, the above Resolution
urging the United States Congress and the Florida Legislature to enact various gun
control regulations is submitted to the City Commission for its consideration.
DT/sc
Agenda Item R r7H
Date '- 16- 1_3