HARTFORD—U.S. Senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) released the following statement regarding the Obama Administration’s executive actions to strengthen the federal background check system to keep guns out of potentially dangerous hands:

“We applaud the Administration’s actions to strengthen federal background checks for firearms purchases. These changes, while incremental, are steps in the right direction and will clarify background check regulations relating to mental health, and ensure that more reliable information makes its way from states to the NICS federal background check system. But as the President has said over and over again, we need to reform our laws to prevent gun violence in America, and that means Congress must act. The American people want common sense changes to our gun laws, and we won’t give up the fight to make sure that Congress listens, then actually does the right thing.”

Click here to read the White House fact sheet on today’s executive actions:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/01/03/fact-sheet-strengthening-federal-background-check-system-keep-guns-out-p