HR1349 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1349 LRB099 22341 MST 49732 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, According to recent estimates, firearm use led to the deaths of nearly 34,000 Americans, including: 21,175 suicides, 11,208 homicides, 505 deaths due to accidental discharge of a firearm, and 281 deaths due to the undetermined intent of firearm usage; these totals include: 1,117 Illinoisans who died through firearm usage, including: 576 homicides, 496 suicides, 18 unintentional deaths, 16 legal interventions, and 11 through undetermined intent; and

WHEREAS, The number of shooting victims in the City of Chicago in 2015 totaled 2,988, and to date in 2016 it stands at 1,523; with more deaths occurring every month in 2016 when compared to the same period of 2015; and

WHEREAS, According to a recent study by the American Journal of Medicine, Americans are 10 times more likely to be killed by guns than people in other developed countries; and

WHEREAS, According to the advocacy group Be Smart for Kids, every year, at least 100 children aged 17 and under die in unintentional shootings and 400 children die from suicide because guns are not safely stored; and

WHEREAS, On January 16, 2013, following the tragedy at Sandy Hook elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut and in response to the growing epidemic of gun deaths, President Barack Obama issued a Presidential Memorandum directing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conduct or sponsor research into the causes of gun violence and strategies to prevent it; and

WHEREAS, Since 1996, the United States Congress has blocked any funds for the CDC to sponsor or conduct research into the causes of gun violence and strategies to prevent it; and

WHEREAS, On June 14, 2016, the American Medical Association (AMA), the largest professional association of physicians in the United States, recognized that "uncontrolled ownership and use of firearms, especially handguns, is a serious threat to the public's health, inasmuch as the weapons are one of the main causes of intentional and unintentional injuries and deaths"; and

WHEREAS, The AMA joined the American College of Physicians and the American College of Surgeons in recognizing that gun violence is a public health crisis; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the members of the 114th Congress to appropriate funding to allow the CDC to recognize and study gun violence as a public health crisis; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we commend the action of the American Medical Association in officially recognizing gun violence as a public health crisis requiring action by the federal government; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to President Barack H. Obama, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Paul D. Ryan, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, and CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden.