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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 51

2     AMENDMENT NO. ___. Amend House Joint Resolution 51 by
3 replacing everything after the heading with the following:
4     "WHEREAS, Illegal interstate firearms trafficking and the
5 gun violence that results from it have become growing problems
6 in all portions of the State of Illinois, other areas of the
7 Midwest, and throughout the nation; and
 
8     WHEREAS, Children and students are too often the victims of
9 gun crimes, in their homes and on our streets, before, after,
10 and during school hours; and
 
11     WHEREAS, Since the current school year started in September
12 2008, thirty-six Chicago Public School students have been shot
13 and killed; and
 
14     WHEREAS, In Gun Violence: The Real Costs, a book written by
15 Philip J. Cook and Jens Ludwig, the data collected by the

 

 

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1 authors show the cost of security in Chicago public high
2 schools to be $41 million a year, and the costs of security in
3 suburban and downstate Illinois schools are similarly rising
4 rapidly; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Since the federal ban on assault weapons was
6 lifted in 2004, the Chicago Police Department has seized 1,547
7 such weapons; and
 
8     WHEREAS, According to a five-year study conducted by the
9 Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, 43% of
10 all guns seized within five police districts in the City of
11 Chicago originated in Mississippi; and
 
12     WHEREAS, The total cost of gun violence in Chicago is
13 estimated to be $2.5 billion each year, according to the report
14 "Gun Violence among School Age Youth in Chicago" prepared by
15 The University of Chicago Crime Lab, representing a cost to
16 every household in Chicago of about $2,500 each year; and
 
17     WHEREAS, There is an enormous number of illegal guns in
18 Chicago, other areas of Illinois, and throughout the Midwest,
19 and 80% of murder victims in Chicago are killed by guns;
20 therefore, be it
 
21     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE

 

 

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1 NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
2 SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there is created the Interstate
3 Gun Trafficking Task Force within the Illinois State Police, to
4 consist of the following: (1) the Director of State Police or
5 his designee; (2) the Illinois Attorney General or her
6 designee; (3) the Cook County States Attorney or her designee;
7 (4) the Sheriff of Cook County or his designee; (5) the
8 Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department or his
9 designee; (6) three appointees of the Governor who are
10 representatives of federal, suburban or downstate law
11 enforcement officials; (7) three appointees of the Mayor of the
12 City of Chicago who are representatives of law enforcement
13 officials, foundations, or institutions of higher education;
14 (8) the Executive Director of the Illinois Association of
15 Chiefs of Police or his or her designee; and (9) the Executive
16 Director of the Illinois Sheriffs' Association or his or her
17 designee; and be it further
 
18     RESOLVED, That all appointments shall be made no later than
19 45 days following adoption of this resolution; and be it
20 further
 
21     RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall study measures that
22 help reduce illegal interstate gun trafficking in Illinois and
23 the harmful effects of such activity; and be it further
 

 

 

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1     RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall choose its chair and
2 other officers and meet at the call of the chair; and be it
3 further
 
4     RESOLVED, That the members of the Task Force shall serve
5 without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for their
6 reasonable and necessary expenses from funds appropriated for
7 that purpose; and be it further
 
8     RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall report its findings and
9 recommendations to the Governor and General Assembly on or
10 before December 31, 2010; and be it further
 
11     RESOLVED, That legislatures of other states in the Midwest
12 are encouraged to create interstate gun trafficking task forces
13 in their respective states, which task forces may cooperate
14 with the Task Force created by this resolution and with each
15 other; and be it further
 
16     RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be presented to
17 the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives, the
18 President of the Illinois Senate, the Minority Leader of the
19 Illinois House of Representatives, the Minority Leader of the
20 Illinois Senate, the Governor of the State of Illinois, and the
21 Director of the Illinois State Police.".