IN HCR0016

Urges the Legislative Council to assign the Commission on Mental Health to study access to firearms by individuals with mental illness.

References the 2011 shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords as context for examining current gaps in Indiana's firearms regulations.

Identifies that Indiana law does not require mental health determinations for handgun license applicants and relies on dealers' subjective judgment of mental incompetence.

Notes that federal background checks through NICS prohibit sales to those involuntarily committed to mental institutions, but states have been ineffective in reporting mental health information to the system.

Directs the study to examine NICS reporting procedures, mental health identification standards, and firearm permit issuance criteria while balancing privacy rights and public safety concerns.