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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 29, 2003

SENATORS: CONTROVERSIAL MODEL ROCKET BILL MAKING IT EASIER TO GET BOMB-MAKING MATERIALS QUIETLY CREEPS TO SENATE FLOOR

Schumer, Lautenberg vow to close loopholes in federal law that let people accumulatesignificant amounts of dangerous, explosive materials – no questions asked; The Unabomber and Shoe-Bomber used these kinds of explosives

Although Justice Department says bill is an "unacceptable security risk," Senate Judiciary Committee has approved the legislation – paving the way for a Senate vote on it at anytime

US Senators Charles Schumer and Frank Lautenberg today announced the beginning of a new effort to stop legislation that would exempt the purchase of certain explosives used to propel high-powered hobby rockets from federal license and permitting requirements, including background checks. The Senators said the bill, S. 724, would create a new loophole that lets terrorists accumulate large amounts of explosives and makes it harder for law enforcement and counter-terrorism officials to prevent criminal activities.

"Sometimes the things you see in Congress make you scratch your head in wonderment. Why anyone in the post-9/11 world would think that making it easier to get bomb-making materials is a good idea is beyond me," said Schumer, the head of the Senate Democratic Homeland Security Task Force. "This bill would essentially create a new loophole that lets terrorists and criminals accumulate large amounts of the same explosives the Unabomber and other terrorists have used. We should be tightening the restrictions on this stuff, not loosening them."

"Allowing anybody to walk into a store and buy huge amounts of rocket fuel is ludicrous. We need to protect our homeland from terrorists; not give them even more tools to kill Americans," said Lautenberg. "The bottom line is that some of the rockets people are building these days aren’t 'models' anymore; they are missiles with tips that can be filled with explosives or biological or chemical weapons."

A provision in the Homeland Security Act requires purchasers of explosives like ammonium perchlorate composite propellant (APCP) and black powder to undergo background checks and get permits from the ATF. S. 724 would exempt high-powered model rocket users from going through this process. Specifically, the legislation would allow an individual rocket user to purchase up to two pounds of black powder at a time, up to .9 pounds of non-detonable rocket propellant (like APCP) at a time, as well as fuses, matches and igniters without getting any kind of permit or undergoing a background check. Schumer and Lautenberg said if the bill becomes law, terrorists and criminals would be able to quietly accumulate large quantities of explosives.

APCP is used in the boosters of the Space Shuttle and can propel model rockets more than 20,000 feet into the air. Model rocketeers are often required to get waivers from the FAA prior to a launch. Black powder has been used in a number of high-profile bomb plots, including ones by the Unabomber, alleged Olympic Park bomber Eric Rudolph and alleged Shoe-Bomber Richard Reid. In addition, the Justice Department has said these high-powered model rockets could be turned into surface-to-air missiles capable of attacking airplanes or used as “light anti-tank” weapons with a range of nearly five miles.

"The bottom line is that a determined terrorist could easily purchase enough quantities of black powder or other explosives until he or she had enough to make a pipe bomb or larger explosive device," Schumer said. "The ATF says that between 1997 and 2003, it recorded 251 explosive related incidents involving black powder. Loosening the restrictions on this stuff is tantamount to playing Russian Roulette with public safety. We can't let that happen."

Schumer and Lautenberg stressed that they did not want to make it difficult for model rocket enthusiasts to pursue their hobby but said that reasonable controls on explosive materials need to be in place. They said they were willing to sit down with Senator Enzi, the sponsor of S. 724, and others to come up with a compromise that takes their security concerns into account. The Senators said the ATF already exempts purchases of explosives used in most low-powered hobby rockets from background checks (i.e. those requiring less than 62.5 grams of explosives).

S. 724, however, would allow a person to buy more than six times the amount of explosive that is exempted from the background check. According to the ATF, about 90 percent of hobby rocket users use the low-powered rockets, which means that the vast majority do not have to go through any background check or permit process.

The ATF and the Justice Department are opposed to the Enzi bill. In a letter to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, a DOJ official wrote that "if this bill becomes law, it will become very easy for terrorists or other criminals to acquire large rocket motors, fuses, igniters and other materials for use in bombs and/or for use in rockets that have been designed or redesigned as weapons. Additionally, when these explosive materials are used in a bombing or other terrorist or criminal activity, a lack of required records will make it impossible for law-enforcement authorities to trace the materials to their most recent legal purchaser, thus hindering efforts to bring perpetrators to justice and to prevent additional bombings, rocket attacks, or other incidents.

Despite the Justice Department's opposition, however, the Senate Judiciary Committee proceed to approve the legislation in June by a vote of 16-2, paving the way for the Senate to take up the legislation at any time. Schumer and Lautenberg said they would block the bill from moving forward until their concerns are addressed.

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