WASHINGTON, Sept 27 – President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a new executive order aimed at “reduce gun violence and save lives,” United Press International (UPI) reported citing White House.
The order establishes the Emerging Firearms Threats Taskforce to advance efforts to stem the influx of machine gun conversion devices and un serialised, 3D-printed firearms. It also directs federal agencies to improve active shooter drills in schools.
The White House said Thursday that the ATF between 2017 and 2021 recovered 5,454 of machine-gun conversion firearms, a 570 per cent increase over the previous five-year period.
The order directs the task force to assess these emerging gun threats and to issue a report within 90 days.
The task force will also assess the ability of federal agencies’ “operational and legal capacities to detect, intercept, and seize machine-gun conversion devices and un serialised, 3D-printed firearms; and an interagency plan for combatting these emerging threats.”
The White House effort to improve school active shooter drills will seek to maximise their effectiveness while minimising trauma to students.
“Despite the ubiquity of these drills, there is very limited research on how to design and deploy these drills to maximise their effectiveness and limit any collateral harms they might cause,” the White House said.
“Many parents, students, and educators have expressed concerns about the trauma caused by some approaches to these drills.”
The order directs the Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Homeland Security, in coordination with the Attorney General, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the US Surgeon General, to develop and publish, within 110 days, information for K-12 schools and institutions of higher education regarding school-based active shooter drills.
