HB 921 Elimination (PICS) & use National Instant Check System (NICS) - Rep Krieger 2013-2014
Quote:
MEMORANDUM
Posted: February 25, 2013 03:36 PM
From: Representative Timothy Krieger
To: All House members
Subject: Request for Cosponsorship-Eliminate Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS) and Use the National Instant Check System (NICS)
In the near future, I intend to introduce legislation which will eliminate the Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS) and switch to using the National Instant Check System (NICS). The PICS system duplicates the background check which is already completed when a NICS check is conducted and as a result wastes taxpayer dollars.
In a report issued by the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee in 2006 and updated in 2011, about two-thirds of PICS revenues come from the General Fund. With the elimination of PICS, the revenues from the General Fund will be available to fund other programs throughout the Commonwealth. The switchover from PICS to NICS was one of the options discussed by the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee. While the committee did note that this may diminish the comprehensiveness of the background check, I do not believe this is still the case based on recent changes to the NICS system.
As of last year, system changes to NICS have added the capacity to check for state prohibitors, i.e., those prohibitions based solely on state law. This was something previously lacking in the NICS system.
I believe that my legislation will help streamline the background check process and provide substantial savings to the Commonwealth by eliminating duplicative processes.
This letter by the Allegheny County Sportsmen’s League was submitted to the Reps for support of HB 921 in early March 2013..
Use this for your reference, copy paste, write your own better version with your own reason why to dump PICS
HB 921 was introduced & refer to Judiciary on March 6, 2013 read text hereQuote:
Dear Representative:
HB 921 PICS elimination – save taxpayer cash & reducing size of government
Rep Tim Krieger on February 25, 2013 sent out a co sponsorship memo for the Elimination of Pa Instant Check System (PICS) and use of the National Instant Check System (NICS) for the transfer of firearms.
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/...cosponId=11871
This proposed legislation will eliminate the cost of having the added level of duplication of state administered services that the Feds will do at ‘NO’ EXTRA cost.
The intangible benefits are synopsized below.
‘One’ of the main problems with PICS is the long wait on hold 30 minutes plus, the frequent crashing of the PSP computers, especially on weekends and around the holidays. All of this costs the state and business lost revenue from lost sales. In a larger sense the Constitutional implications and concerns overshadow the operational ones. This is at the heart of our objections in that operational delays and dysfunction ‘essentially’ shut down the constitution and we find this unconscionable. Dealers are also checking the NICS system when the state run PICS system is malfunctioning and finding that the state system is the only one inoperative. The NICS system also provides this service without out charge to the states.
Pennsylvania pays extra for the instant check – a job that most states let the feds do for FREE. Perhaps this is why PICS has never issued a cost-benefit analysis. We also have concerns that the state run PICS system has not been, to our knowledge, audited by an independent entity to examine the operational as well as financial performance of this program.
The Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS) from 1998 to 2011 has cost the tax payers in excess of estimated 91,000,000.00 dollars (yes, that IS ‘millions’) to administer to date for background checks for all firearm purchases. The federal NICS would do the same job for no additional cost to taxpayers. It also costs on average $7 million a year for administration and cost to keep the PICS (PA Instant Check System) including the, arguably, illegal ‘Record of Sale’ database system.
We would rather see the millions of taxpayer dollars a year spent on a duplicative system that is forcing legitimate firearms dealers out of business put to better use in arresting and locking up violent career criminals. Additionally, it is far more effective for the state to be employing more police officers with the money wasted on this system than perpetuating a bureaucratic nightmare of convoluted interpretations of law that includes the creation of a database of firearm owners along with all the abuse associated with it misuse.
As a reminder, here are a few quick points regarding the PSP compliance with law:
1. Reclassifying AR-15 rifles as pistols
2. Illegally requiring Social Security Numbers in violation of federal law (Stollenwerk v. PA – PSP lost this court case then ignored Federal Court Judge Sanchez’ decision)
3. Putting firearms purchasers on a delayed status and ‘then’ automatically denying the firearms transaction
***(the list above is not complete and there are repeated additional examples)
You can see the results of all that (our) money spent in supposedly protecting us from criminals buying guns from FFL dealers. It is important to note that the monies spent are ONLY to identify prohibited individuals during the firearms purchase process and are NOT related to the follow up legal and court costs to prosecute these individuals.
Total Illegal Gun Purchase Convictions 1998 -2010 – 1,483
1. Total Arrests 1998 -2010 – 2,296
2. Total Denials Reversed 1998 -2010 – 22,578
3. Total Denials 1998 -2010 – 128,347
4. Total identified prohibited individuals 1998 -2010 – 105,769
(The above number represents individuals that the PSP has not taken any ‘enforcement’ action against for ‘illegally’ attempting to buy a firearm as a disqualified individual)
5. Total Referrals to ATF 1998 -2010 – 198
The PA State Police have wasted at least $91 million operating the duplicative Pennsylvania Instant Check System (PICS) system between 1998 and 2011, which could have been done at ‘no’ cost to gun owners or Pennsylvania by the National Instant Check system, a part of which includes the retention and maintenance of an illegal database of gun owners. How many crimes have the state police solved by the staggering amount of money spent?
We respectfully request that you ‘please’ consider adding your name to HB 921 as a co sponsor to Rep Tim Krieger Eliminating PICS and use the NICS proposed legislation to save the taxpayers several million a year and for actually reducing the size of government within the PSP bureaucracy to administrate PICS by switching to NICS as most of the other states currently use..
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/...type=B&BN=0921
Over the MANY Years WE have tried to reform problems with PICS & PSP by working through the courts, through legislation "fixes", and other political avenues to redress our grievances.
Some minor progress has made to make the process more user friendly especially with denials -appeals and even with that its like pulling teeth to get the PSP bureaucracy to do the right things as prescribed by law, and not exceed the federal or state laws REQUIRMENTS as the listing in the ACSL shows.
Is PICS & the PSP about stopping prohibited individuals from buying firearms and catching criminals that attempt to OR about something else?
It’s way PAST time for PICS to GO!
PICS cost an extra FEE (tax) to transfer a firearm and PICS service is often worse than NICS
This is a complex subject please study up!
read text of HB 921 here
http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/...type=B&BN=0921
Here is “some” of the research on the PICS vs NICS subject already posted on PAFOA in the past, PLEASE read some of these stories and weigh the in the balance of keep PICS or just letting the Feds do this with NICS as most states already do without the extra problems of PICS & PSP politics involved.
Senate Law and Justice hearing May 2011 A must watch
http://forum.pafoa.org/pennsylvania-...w-justice.html
Are YOU Tired of Paying to Exercise YOUR ‘Right to Keep & Bear Arms’? Aug 26, 2010
Both sides of keeping or replacing covered here with the concept was explored in public hearing which was open for anyone to express their views. Which helped lead to the conclusion that HB 2127 was required
http://forum.pafoa.org/pennsylvania-...26-2010-a.html
PAFOA and PICS Question
http://forum.pafoa.org/pennsylvania-...-question.html
VIDEO: P.I.C.S. problems plague Harrisburg Gun Show
From the FFL dealers point of view
http://forum.pafoa.org/pennsylvania-...-gun-show.html
PICS "RESEARCH"
http://forum.pafoa.org/general-2/900...-research.html
PICS Scheduled Instant Check Outage 9/2 - 9/6
Added mounting cost for computer / technology upgrades with more required if we keep PICS
http://forum.pafoa.org/general-2/851...9-2-9-6-a.html
AR-15 OWNERS – take note of immanent PSP regulations changes
PSP bureaucracy leadership exceeding legal authority and “creating” policy for a agenda
http://forum.pafoa.org/general-2/650...s-changes.html
Handgun Registry in PA
http://forum.pafoa.org/general-2/116...gistry-pa.html
COLOR="Blue"]Still more PAFOA posting on this problem doesn’t have a limit[/COLOR]
They'd never use the "Record of Sale" database to confiscate someone's firearms...
http://forum.pafoa.org/general-2/125...-firearms.html
~snip~
~snip~Quote:
"We checked with state police and determined Dalyrmple is the registered owner of nine assorted handguns," Chitwood said. "We got a search warrant and confiscated numerous rifles, handguns and ammo."
Another thread on this subject with some good points being made by PAFOA posters
PA gun Registry...
http://forum.pafoa.org/general-2/110...-registry.html
Reserved for future update & info
MORE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION to FOLLOW
PLEASE take the appropriate amount of time to study up on the subject so you can make an informed decision about keep PICS or support HB 921 and dump PICS ( & PSP involvement) to be replace by NICS
NOTE this if HB 921 passes as written.
All Record Of Sale (ROS) of any future firearm transfers going to the PSP is eliminated completely.
No new data going into the PSP gun (non) registry it soon will become obsolete.
(just to be crystal clear AGAIN : nothing in HB 921 will do anything about the many, many decades old existing (illegal) sorta legal because its "not complete" database kept and maintained by the PSP this is a separate issue.
That will be address after passage of HB 921 removes the claimed legal reasons the PSP use to keep your records now)
see below for HB 792 thread IF both would be passed this session the problem about the database should go away.
IF in the end you are for the changes outlined with going NICS only
Please contact ALL the Reps listed to ask them to become a sponsor of HB 921
HB 792 (NO) Handgun Registry Legislation – Rep Tallman 2013-2014
http://forum.pafoa.org/pennsylvania-...13-2014-a.html
