Press Releases

Washington, D.C. – 8/18/25… Last week, Congressman Mike Lawler (NY-17) sent a letter affirming his support for commonsense gun safety measures, stressing that expanding background checks to private sellers will do little to address the root causes of violent crime in New York. His letter responded to New York Democratic Members of Congress who urged him to back H.R. 18, the Bipartisan Background Checks Act of 2025, legislation he cosponsors as a consistent supporter of universal background checks.

“Crime in New York is a serious problem. And unfortunately, many of you, my Democratic colleagues in Congress, as well as the Governor and state legislators, ignore the underlying problems in favor of trying to score cheap political points,” Congressman Lawler wrote.

“Cashless bail is an unmitigated disaster in the state, coddling criminals and allowing them to miss their court dates and reoffend. The Clean Slate law… hides the records of millions of convicted felons from the public… Raise the Age has failed miserably in its intent… the Governor’s lackeys on the Parole Board continue to grant parole to dangerous criminals like child rapists and cop killers, including monsters like Robert McCain,” Congressman Lawler continued.

Lawler also highlighted statistics showing that:

• Over half of criminals who used firearms obtained them illegally.
• 90% of those firearms did not come from retail sources.
• Only 1.2% of guns used by criminals came from private retail sellers, and only 0.8% from gun shows.

“Instead of addressing actual gun violence and violent crime in New York, many of you continue to hyper-fixate on partisan exercises and downplay Governor Hochul's misguided soft-on-crime policies,” Congressman Lawler concluded.

“I invite you to stop playing partisan politics and focus on real, actionable solutions — start by demanding a full repeal of New York’s cashless bail law, raise the age, and discovery ‘reforms’ that have released dangerous criminals back onto the street.”

Congressman Lawler is one of the most bipartisan members of Congress and represents New York's 17th Congressional District, which is just north of New York City and contains all or parts of Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, and Westchester Counties. He was rated the most effective freshman lawmaker in the 118th Congress, 8th overall, surpassing dozens of committee chairs.

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A full copy of the letter can be found HERE.