WASHINGTON - The White House issued a set of recommendations Friday aimed at further curbing the illegal use of firearms in the United States, by making it easier for federal, state and local agencies to purchase "smart guns," which only operate for certain users.
The set of measures, which follow executive action President Barack Obama took in January, includes a proposed rule that would allow the Social Security Administration to report beneficiaries with mental health problems to the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).
While modest, the proposals came under fire from some police groups and gun rights organizations even before they were publicly unveiled. But gun violence activists and administration officials described the measures as prudent steps aimed at preventing firearms from getting into the wrong hands.
"We will never be able to stop every form of violence, but when we can take action to save even one life, we owe it to every American to do so," wrote White House senior adviser Valerie Jarrett in a blog post on the White House website. "The actions the administration takes will help make our communities safer and keep more guns out of the hands of folks who shouldn't have them. That is just common sense."
Under the measures, the government would define requirements that gun makers need to meet for police to consider purchasing. The White House said that local governments could apply for grants for guns equipped with the technology.
Though a German company tried to introduce a smart gun into the United States two years ago, most of the technology is at the prototype stage. The guns are designed to allow only those authorized to fire them. Manufacturers are pursuing a range of authorization methods, ranging from fingerprints to wireless chips connected to rings or watches.
Proponents argue the technology would cut down on suicides, stolen guns used in crimes, guns taken from police officers and used against them, and school shootings where students use their parents' guns. These advocates hope the president's actions will spur the market's development by pressuring gun manufacturers to enter the market and jumpstarting private funding for smart gun start-ups, which have faced intense backlash from gun rights advocates who fear the technology will be mandated.
Gun control advocates have been working for months to get police agencies around the country to commit to adopting smart guns - to prove they work and to create a sizable demand for them.
Rabbi Joel Mosbacher, who co-chairs the Metro Industrial Areas Foundation's Do Not Stand Idly By campaign, called the new actions "real" and "well-thought through."
"And we think they will send a clear signal to gun manufacturers that the largest gun purchaser in the nation - the federal government - is in the market for smarter, safer guns," he said.
But some law enforcement groups, including the Fraternal Order of Police, have argued that it's irresponsible to give these firearms to law enforcement agencies when they have not be fully tested.
James Pasco, the FOP's executive director, said in an interview Friday that he "doesn't know anyone who's seen" a smart gun in commercial use.
"It's a concept more than it is a technology," Pasco said. "To deploy an unproven concept or technology with law enforcement, using police officers as guinea pigs, is something that causes us great concern."
As part of Friday's announcement, Jarrett said the Pentagon will continue to help manufacturers test smart firearms under real-world conditions at the U.S. Army Aberdeen Test Center in Maryland, and manufacturers may be eligible to win cash prizes as part of the program.
The White House will also bring together state and local elected officials from all 50 states to Washington in May to explore how these leaders can use their own executive authority to control gun violence.
The rule the Social Security Administration published Friday, which allows the agency to report mentally ill beneficiaries to the FBI's background checks system so they can be prevented from purchasing a firearm, will be subject to public comment for 60 days.