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Bill would allow registration of war trophies

A Utah congressman has reintroduced a bill allowing some veterans to register firearms that they collected as war souvenirs.

Rep. Chris Cannon, R-Utah, has reintroduced the Veterans’ Heritage Firearms Act, a bill that would allow weapons brought into the U.S. by service members from 1934 to Oct. 1, 1968, to be registered and legally kept by the service member or immediate family members.

It would not apply to weapons brought back by service members since 1968, something generally prohibited by U.S. military policy.

The bill allows an opportunity for a veteran or their heirs to register a weapon that, under current law, could be seized and destroyed, with the owner facing a criminal penalty. Weapons could be registered only if they were brought back with permission of the military.

An amnesty period for registering trophy weapons was announced in 1968, but veterans and their heirs have long complained that they never got the word and are now forced to keep unregistered firearms because registering them could cause legal problems.

Cannon, who has supported other gun-owner legislation, is picking up the ball on a proposal that has been around for many years. Former Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., had led the effort, but Gibbons resigned his seat to successfully run for Nevada governor. Cannon, who had co-sponsored Gibbon’s bills, is now leading the charge in an effort that has hit a plateau because it rarely has managed to get more than about 50 hard-core supporters in Congress.

The new bill, HR 1141, was jointly referred to the House Judiciary and Ways and Means Committees, which both oversee part of the federal firearms laws.