US President Joe Biden's administration is pressing to harmonize global corporate tax rates to discourage multinational firms from shifting profits
US President Joe Biden's administration is pressing to harmonize global corporate tax rates to discourage multinational firms from shifting profits

President Joe Biden will release a five-part plan for crime prevention plan on Wednesday in a speech that focuses on gun violence.

Biden intends to build on executive orders he signed in April cracking down on “ghost guns,” according to a White House official. He also wants to hold rogue firearms dealers accountable for violating federal laws. Biden's plan also includes employing more police officers and strengthening the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to stop illegal gun trafficking across the country.

On Wednesday morning, Ron Klain, Biden's chief of staff, posted on Twitter that "Tackling gun crime starts with tackling the people supplying the guns."

A report by the Council of Criminal Justice found that homicides in 2020 increased 30% and gun assaults increased 8% from 2019. The report showed that the increase in homicides coincided with the emergence of mass protests after the death of George Floyd.

The report also notes that “no connection exists between police violence, protests against such violence, and community violence.” While there was a sharp uptick in gun violence, property crimes such as burglaries plummeted last year.

Biden is also set to meet with state leaders, police chiefs, and mayors to discuss how they can make communities safer.

His moves come as gun control activists are growing impatient with his administration. Biden had promised reforms after calling the nation's gun problem an “epidemic.”

Gun sales have soared in the past year. The jump was due in part to the proliferation of illegal guns, which coincided with an increase in violent crime. There has also been massive social unrest over the killings of black people and a contested presidential election.

The Treasury Department released a report Wednesday on how states and localities can use funds from the American Rescue Plan to respond to violent crimes and invest in community policing.

While there is “preliminary evidence” to support a connection between guns and a rise in homicides, “more research is required” the Council of Criminal Justice noted.