Poll: New Gun Laws Unlikely

Americans -- even those who own guns -- support a wide variety of restrictions on gun ownership and purchases, but doubt that Congress will pass any gun control legislation this year.

According to this CBS News Poll, two-thirds think Congress should pass stricter gun control laws this year, but only 39 percent think Congress will pass such laws.

CONGRESS AND GUN CONTROL LAWS

The public's support for limitations on guns, however, does not extend to an outright ban on gun use. In addition, there is significant concern that stricter laws may not be effective at reducing gun violence. Two-thirds say the laws covering the sale of handguns should be made more strict. But given the choice between more laws and better enforcement of current laws, Americans say current gun laws need to be better enforced.

PREVENTING GUN VIOLENCE

The public's evaluation of what has caused the recent shootings - - the April shooting at Columbine High School, the office shooting in Atlanta, and the attack at the Los Angeles Jewish Community Center just last week -- focuses more on individual than societal causes. But guns are the most important of the broader social concerns.

More than eight in ten adults say they've followed the shootings closely. When asked what they thought could prevent events like these from happening, better parenting and gun control were the top two specific suggestions the public volunteered. However, 22 percent of the public said they could think of nothing thawould prevent events like these.

WHAT DO YOU THINK COULD PREVENT SHOOTINGS?

Of the most recent shooting events, the incident at Columbine High School appears to have had the greatest impact on the public's memory. When asked what they think is the main reason events such as these occur, lack of parental supervision was clearly the number one response, given by 27 percent of the public. Twelve percent cited gun availability as the most important cause of these incidents, followed by a breakdown in morals (9 percent) and the individual psychological problems of the various shooters (9 percent). Violence in the media was named by 7 percent.

The public does not necessarily see additional gun control laws as the solution to these violent incidents. When asked specifically whether stricter gun laws would reduce violent crime, Americans divided nearly evenly -- 46 percent said stricter laws would reduce violence, and 50 percent said such laws would not. More women than men put faith in stricter gun laws, as do more Democrats than Republicans.

WOULD STRICTER GUN LAWS REDUCE VIOLENT CRIME?

In fact, a majority of the public would prefer better enforcement of this country's current gun control laws. Given a choice between the two, 40 percent said that stricter gun control laws were necessary, but 56 percent said that existing gun control laws need to be better enforced.

EVEN GUN OWNERS SUPPORT MANY RESTRICTIONS

A number of specific proposals relating to gun purchase and ownership receive strong public support, even among Americans who own guns themselves. Four in five gun owners (and the same number of all adults) favor a three day waiting period between the time a person applies to buy a handgun and the time it is sold to them. Majorities also support extending the waiting period for gun purchases at gun shows, requiring manufacturers to put trigger locks or other safety devices on all guns, and the ban on assault weapons.

SUPPORT FOR GUN RESTRICTIONS

However, there are specific gun legislation proposals on which gun owners and the general public disagree. Support for gun registration is much lower among those who own guns than among Americans in general. And while half of gun owners favor permitting people to carry a concealed firearm, only a third of the overall public agrees. Only one in seven gun owners support a ban on all handguns. Although only a minority of adults favor this, the general public is more than twice as likely as gun owners to support a handgun ban.

SUPPORT FOR SPECIFIC RESTRICTIONS

Currently, there are guns in about half of all households in the United States. One third of the public reports they themselves own a un.

Many of these proposed gun laws receive bipartisan support. Majorities of both Republicans and Democrats favor requiring manufacturers to install trigger locks or other safety devices, extending the waiting period at gun shows, firearm registration, and a three day waiting period for handgun purchases. Both men and women favor these proposals, although women support them much more strongly than men.

GUNS AS AN ISSUE

If Congress does not take action on gun control this year, it may be because gun control has yet to emerge as a critical public concern. On the national level, it is not among the very top issues that the public wants the government to address in the coming year. Four percent cite gun control now, up from 2 percent in July, but it falls behind Social Security, the budget deficit, taxes, health care and education.

MOST IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR GOVERNMENT TO ADDRESS

The issue of taxes has become increasingly important in the last two months. In part, this is because Republicans now rate taxes as the number one issue they want the government to address, which was not the case before Congress took its August recess. Democrats give three other issues top priority: Social Security, education and health care. For political independents, the budget deficit ranks first.

When asked which party would do the best at dealing with gun control, the public is divided -- and many can't choose either party. Twenty-nine percent name the Republicans, 33 percent think the Democrats would do a better job addressing the issue. Groups that are more supportive of stricter gun control -- such as women -- are more likely to think the Democratic party would do the best.

THE NRA AND THE SECOND AMENDMENT

The active public campaign taken by the National Rifle Association in the wake of the Columbine shootings in April may have helped that organization, as the public's view of the NRA appears to have improved in recent months. In this poll, 48 percent of the public said they have a favorable opinion of the NRA, and 37 percent are unfavorable. In April, just after the Columbine incident, fewer Americans had a favorable opinion of the NRA.

OPINION OF THE NRA

This poll also marks an increase in positive views of the organization since Charlton Heston became an NRA spokesman; in 1995, only 40 percent said they had a favorable opinion. Views of the NRA are much more favorable in households where there are guns than in non-gun households. In fact, the increase in positive feelings about the NRA since last April has taken place entirely among gun households.

When questioned as to whether the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees all Americans the right to own guns, just under half, 48 percent, think the Constitution does make this guarantee and 38 percent think it does not. Gun owners are nearly twice as likely as non-gun owners to interpret the Constitution in this manner.