The U.S. House of Representatives passed the first major gun control legislation in 25 years. The Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2019, H.R. 8, requires background checks for those buying guns, regardless of the venue the firearms are being purchased from. As a result of the rise in school shootings in 2018 and the increased legislative pressure from supporters of gun control, the bill passed 240 to 190, with Democrats in control of the House.

The legislation, passed on Feb. 27,  does however, have some exemptions. Firearms given to family members as gifts, do not require background checks.

However ,the passing of the bill was not met without backlash. Republican Steve Scalise, a victim of gun violence at a congressional baseball game, appeared in a video tweeted out by the National Rifle Association, arguing that the bills would “infringe upon the rights of law-abiding citizens to buy and ultimately to share their own guns.”