By State Rep. Melissa Shusterman
Pennsylvania’s current gun laws impact not only our Commonwealth but also our neighboring states. Due to the lenient nature of our laws, Pennsylvania is unfortunately part of what’s known as The Iron Pipeline, a network of states with weak gun laws exploited by criminals to obtain guns through unlawful means.
In addition to increasing the numbers of illegal guns in Pennsylvania, these guns are then taken to other states and cities with stricter gun laws and used in violent crime, making Pennsylvania a supplier state for illegal firearms.
Per data released by the New Jersey State Police, so far in 2025, Pennsylvania is the largest supplier state for illegal firearms recovered in New Jersey.
In 2022, the nonprofit organization Brady United released a report on crime guns in Pennsylvania. They found that over 44 years, a minimum of 19,673 firearms traced to PA dealers were recovered during investigations of violent crimes. Data submission by law enforcement agencies was incomplete and therefore underrepresents the real-world totals.
Statistics only report the number of illegal guns recovered by law enforcement, which means that the percentage of all trafficked guns is significantly higher. With this rampant problem plaguing our Commonwealth’s communities, we must support commonsense gun legislation to help law enforcement combat violent crime and to increase the safety of our communities.
In working towards these goals, I have introduced House Bill 837, which would implement the “one gun a month” rule. Exceptions are provided for licensed dealers, licensed collectors, law enforcement and other qualified entities.
I am proposing a reasonable, commonsense limit on handgun purchases. Individuals would not be able to purchase or sell more than one handgun within a 30-day period. Any fines collected from violators would go toward youth education and activities designed to reduce gun violence; as well as for grants to law enforcement agencies for equipment and training to prevent gun-related injuries.
By improving our Commonwealth’s gun laws, we can create a safer environment for ourselves, our neighbors, and our law enforcement officers.
My legislation follows in the steps of other states, such as Maryland and New Jersey, to eliminate “multiple sale” purchases — transactions in which two or more guns are sold to the same purchaser within a period of five days. These kinds of sales are robust indicators of illegal firearms trafficking.
According to the Giffords Law Center, a gun violence prevention advocacy organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords who survived a gunman’s assassination attempt, handguns purchased in multiple sale transactions are up to 64% more likely to be used in a crime than handguns sold individually.
After this type of law was implemented in Virginia, there was a significant reduction in the number of criminally used guns recovered outside the state, which were traced back to Virginia.
I want to emphasize that my bill is not meant to restrict the rights of gun owners in Pennsylvania. Rather, this legislation is meant to curtail the flow of firearms to criminals.
With rational policy that supports law enforcement, we can take steps to remove Pennsylvania’s stigma as a participant in the Iron Pipeline; and instead, showcase our state as we create solutions to reduce gun violence and gun trafficking.