House to extend ban on undetectable firearms

The House next week is expected to approve a 10-year extension to a law that bans the manufacture, sale or ownership of firearms that can’t be picked up by a metal detector.

{mosads}The House bill from Rep. Howard Coble (R-N.C.) would extend the law that was first put into place in 1988, initially for a 10-year period. The law was last extended in 2003, and expires at the end of this year.

The law requires guns and gun parts to contain enough metal to be picked up by a metal detector.

The extension of the Undetectable Firearms Act comes in the midst of a developing debate over the ability to produce weapons parts using 3-D printers. That technology has led to increased calls for the renewal of the Undetectable Firearms Act.

Rep. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) is one of the members who has called for a ban on 3-D printed guns.