The term "assault rifle" originated during World War II and refers to military weapons capable of automatic fire and having detachable magazines that hold 20 or more cartridges. These weapons were developed to use firepower to reduce the reliance on marksmanship in military settings. Currently, the term includes both automatic and semiautomatic firearms designed for killing people and generally considered to be of little use for hunting or trap and skeet shooting. If assault weapons are defined as the 49 models that were temporarily banned from importation by the Bush administration in March 1989, plus those made domestically, then the U.S. Treasury Department's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms estimates that there are 1 million assault weapons in private hands in the United States. Although the actual numbers of deaths and injuries caused by assault weapons are not known, their danger is in the potential each semiautomatic assault weapon confers upon an individual to kill and wound a large number of people. There is strong public support for a ban on the manufacture and sale of assault weapons. The single greatest barrier to the enactment of Federal legislation that would restrict or ban access to semiautomatic assault weapons is a precise definition of the weapons. Establishing objective criteria is proving difficult for legislators. Issues to be considered in support for such legislation is the balance between the right to private ownership of firearms and the need for public safety. Cost is also a consideration, since taxpayers bear most of the costs associated with firearms injuries. 46 references