A year after the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, Senator Bob Menendez (NJ-D) and Representative Ted Deutch (FL-D) introduced the Keep America Safe Act. The bill would ban the sale of gun magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition.

In a February 12 press conference, supporters called the legislation a step in the process of passing individual gun safety measures instead of a comprehensive package. Senator Richard Blumenthal (CT-D), cosponsor of the bill, stated:

“Guns become doubly and triply deadline in these massacres because of these high-capacity magazines, and so if we take one simple step in approving this prohibition, we can literally save lives. There is no more simple, straightforward way to save lives from gun violence than to ban these high-capacity magazines.”

The National Rifle Association issued a statement that said:

“This legislation would effectively ban the most commonly owned firearms for self-defense. It is an arbitrary limit pulled out of thin air with no evidence that the limits would improve public safety. In fact, the after report from the deadliest school shooting in American history states that magazine limits would have no impact. This is just more nonsense from anti-gun zealots who are looking to score political points by proposing legislation that would make criminals out of law-abiding citizens exercising their constitutional right to self-defense while doing nothing to deter criminals from committing crimes.”

The bill has about 24 cosponsors in the Senate and 65 in the House, all Democrats. With no Republican support, it stands no chance of passing the Senate, though Senator Menendez may find a way to force a vote.

On February 6, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on “Preventing Gun Violence: A Call to Action.” The hearing was the first congressional hearing on gun violence in eight years.

For more background, see the March 2013 issue of Congressional Digest on “Gun Violence Prevention,” the November 1999 issue of Congressional Digest on “Firearms in America,” the April 2010 issue of Supreme Court Debates on “Gun Control in the States,” and the May 2008 issue of Supreme Court Debates on “The Second Amendment.”