New York City, NY (WENY) -- New York Senator Chuck Schumer is calling on the Department of Alcohol, Firearms, and Tabacco (ATF) and the federal government to crack down on so-called “ghost guns”.  

During a Sunday press conference in New York City, the senate majority leader noted several key numbers; among those, that the number of the untraceable weapons that have been recovered so far this year is set to outpace numbers from 2020. Additionally, this year’s number of recoveries has surpassed the total number of recovered “ghost guns” in 2018. Schumer noted New York City has seen nearly a 700% increase in recoveries.   

As part of the press conference, Schumer also spoke about a new rule that would help curb the rise in “ghost guns”. He said the new rule makes it so that different kinds of frames and receivers for “ghost guns” will be considered firearms, and will be subject to other gun regulations, like background checks and needing serial numbers. People who sell untraceable weapons would also need to register as gun dealers.  

"Why are these dangerous? Three reasons: one, they're totally unregulated; two, they're available to anyone - kids could do this; and three, no background check is required. And yet they are dangerous guns, once assembled, they're just as dangerous as a gun that you bought whole in a gun shop or anywhere else,” said Schumer.   

Schumer added that though New York City has seen an increase in the number of “ghost guns”, Upstate New York and Long Island are also dealing with the issue.