WASHINGTON (AP) - President Clinton's new budget will include $10 million for research into how to prevent guns from being fired by anyone but their owners, a top White House aide said Sunday.
White House Chief of Staff John Podesta said the National Institute of Justice would help fund research and development of so-called smart gun technology, now being developed by several handgun manufacturers.
Podesta said the Clinton administration hoped to work with the gun makers on developing the technology, which would use fingerprints, radio waves or other ways to ensure that a weapon would fire only when used by its owner.
``We've had some discussions with them about this, about how we can improve the technology so that, again, only a lawful owner can use the gun,'' Podesta said on CBS's ``Face the Nation.'' ``And if that's true, what you can prevent is a police officer being disarmed by a felon and having the gun used against the police officer. But I think almost most importantly, it'll prevent children from being able to get access to guns and use them.''
The $10 million would be in Clinton's proposed budget for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1. Clinton had proposed $4 million for smart-gun research in the current year's budget, but Congress rejected his request, according to the White House.
Podesta announced the smart-gun initiative as he also urged Congress to pass gun control legislation. Following the shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado, House and Senate negotiators failed to agree on a juvenile crime bill that contained gun control measures, including background checks of purchasers at gun shows.
``Given the Congress that we have in front of us, it's going to be a very difficult chore to get that passed through this Congress,'' Podesta said. ``But we are going to press ahead. With members going home and listening to their constituencies, we still have a good chance of getting the common-sense gun legislation that is before Congress passed into law this year.''