AURORA, Ill. (AP) — Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed a plan Monday requiring background checks for all gun sales in the state by 2024.
The measure also provides funding for mental health programs in communities most impacted by gun violence and creates a stolen gun database.
Pritzker, a first-term Democrat seeking re-election, called it “the most comprehensive reform to our state firearms laws in over a generation,” according to a statement.
The plan also modernizes the Firearm Owners Identification card system, by allowing Illinois State Police to create electronic records and streamlining licenses. Pritzker says the system hasn’t been updated in decades. The law takes effect next year.
The Illinois State Rifle Association, a gun owners’ rights organization, did not take a position on the plan.
The number of Illinois residents with FOID cards has almost doubled, from 1.2 million in 2010 to 2.2 million currently.
