Biden to sign an executive order to increase the number of background checks on firearms

By Zoë Richards -

President Joe Biden will sign an executive order on Tuesday aimed at increasing background checks on a visit to a suburb of Los Angeles, California, which was the scene of a mass shooting earlier this year.

A senior administration official explained that Biden plans to sign the order in Monterey Park, where 11 people were killed in January at a gathering for Lunar New Year celebrations.

The executive order will instruct Attorney General Merrick Garland to clarify the legal definition of who is "involved in the business" of selling firearms, an authority the Administration official said is spelled out in bipartisan legislation on firearms that Biden signed last year after the mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

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“This news will mean that fewer guns will be sold without a background check, and therefore fewer guns will end up in the hands of criminals and domestic abusers,” the official said on a call with reporters presenting the order.

According to FBI data, last year the National Instant Background Check System conducted more than 31 million background checks on people who wanted to possess firearms or explosives.

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The Administration official said it's unclear how many new background checks the executive order would trigger.

The order also urges members of the Biden Cabinet to promote the effective use of extreme risk protection orders, or “red flag” laws, in 19 states and Washington, DC, by working with law enforcement, law enforcement, health care providers and educators.

Through this order, Biden will also encourage the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to produce a report examining how firearms manufacturers are marketing firearms, including to minors.

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It seems unlikely that the recently divided Congress will take up any more gun bills after it passed a sweeping, bipartisan bill last year.

This measure provides grants to states for red flag laws, expands background checks to include background checks on minors, and closes the so-called boyfriend loophole, keeping guns away from domestic partners convicted of abuse.

In addition, it calls for increased background checks for people ages 18-21 and funding for youth mental health services.

Biden signed the law just two days after the Supreme Court struck down a law limiting concealed carry permits.

Biden is also expected on Tuesday to reiterate his call on Congress to ban so-called assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, a goal he was unable to achieve even when Democrats controlled both chambers.

Biden urged Congress to act in his State of the Union address last month, when he paid tribute to guest Brandon Tsay, who helped take down the Monterey Park suspect.

“We know our work is not done.

Let's finish the job and ban these assault weapons," Biden said then.