PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Dec 17, 2025
Federal Firearm Licensing Act
This bill generally requires an individual to obtain a license before purchasing, receiving, or possessing a firearm. The bill also requires background checks for firearms transfers between private parties (i.e., unlicensed individuals).
Specifically, this bill requires individuals who purchase, receive, or possess a firearm to have a valid federal firearm purchasing license (or a state firearm purchasing license with substantially similar requirements). The bill requires the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to establish a federal system for issuing firearm purchasing licenses and sets forth requirements for the system, including eligibility requirements for a license (e.g., training in firearms safety and background investigation and criminal history check), standards for denying or revoking a license, and requirements for reporting transactions.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
The bill makes it unlawful to (1) purchase, receive, or possess a firearm without a valid firearm purchaser license; or (2) sell or transfer a firearm to an individual who does not have a valid firearm purchaser license or fail to report such a sale or transfer to law enforcement.
Additionally, the bill prohibits a firearm transfer between private parties unless a federal firearms licensee (e.g., gun dealer) first takes possession of the firearm to conduct a background check.
People & committees
Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] · D–NJ
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Oct 15, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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Analyze S.3544 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
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