BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                        AB 538|
          |Office of Senate Floor Analyses   |                              |
          |1020 N Street, Suite 524          |                              |
          |(916) 651-1520         Fax: (916) |                              |
          |327-4478                          |                              |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
           
                                           
                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 538
          Author:   Pan (D)
          Amended:  6/4/13 in Senate
          Vote:     21

           
          SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE  :  5-2, 6/11/13
          AYES:  Hancock, Block, De León, Liu, Steinberg
          NOES:  Anderson, Knight

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  5-2, 6/24/13
          AYES:  De León, Hill, Lara, Padilla, Steinberg
          NOES:  Walters, Gaines

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  50-23, 5/20/13 - See last page for vote


           SUBJECT  :    Firearms

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill makes a series of changes to firearm  
          purchase and transfer processes, as specified.

           ANALYSIS  :    

          Existing law:

          1.Prohibits any person from selling, leasing, or transferring  
            firearms unless the person has been issued a firearms dealer's  
            license, as specified.

                                                                CONTINUED





                                                                     AB 538
                                                                     Page  
          2

          2.Requires the register or record of electronic transfer for  
            handguns, and all firearms starting January 1, 2014, to  
            include specified information including the date and time of  
            the sale.

          3.Requires, except as permitted by the Department of Justice  
            (DOJ) regulations, the purchaser of a firearm to provide his  
            or her right thumbprint on the register in a manner prescribed  
            by the DOJ.

          4.Requires the firearms dealer to record on the register or  
            record of electronic transfer the date that the firearm is  
            delivered.

          5.Requires, within 10 days of the date a handgun, and any  
            firearm starting January 1, 2014, is acquired as an  
            institutional weapon, as defined, by an authorized law  
            enforcement agency, a record of that acquisition to be entered  
            as an institutional weapon into the Automated Firearms System  
            (AFS) via the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications  
            System (CLETS) by the acquiring agency. Requires that any  
            agency without access to AFS to arrange with the sheriff of  
            the county in which the agency is located to input this  
            information via CLETS.  

          6.Prohibits a person from purchasing or receiving a handgun,  
            except an antique firearm, without a valid handgun safety  
            certificate, and prohibits a person from selling, delivering,  
            loaning, or transferring a handgun, except an antique firearm,  
            to another person without a valid handgun safety certificate.
           
          This bill:

          1.Exempts the requirement that the seller be a licensed firearms  
            dealer in the case of the sale, delivery, or transfer of a  
            firearm when made by an authorized law enforcement  
            representative of a city, county, city and county, or of the  
            state or federal government, if both of the following  
            conditions are met:

             A.   The sale, delivery, or transfer is made to:

                     A person who is a license firearms dealer, as  
                 specified.

                                                                CONTINUED





                                                                     AB 538
                                                                     Page  
          3

                     A wholesaler.
                     A licensed manufacturer or importer of firearms or  
                 ammunition.

             A.   The firearm is not subject to any of the following:

                     The firearm is a nuisance weapon subject to  
                 surrender, as specified.
                     The firearm is unclaimed, abandoned, or subject to  
                 destruction, as specified.

             A.   If the authorized law enforcement representative sells,  
               delivers, or transfers a firearm that the government agency  
               owns to a person who is a licensed firearms dealer, as  
               specified, within 10 days of the date that the firearm is  
               delivered the agency has entered a record of the delivery  
               into the AFS, as specified.

          1.Exempts from the prohibition on the purchase or receipt by, or  
            the sale, delivery, or transfer of a firearm to a person  
            without a valid handgun safety certificate when made by an  
            authorized law enforcement representative of a city, county,  
            city and county, or of the state or federal government, if  
            both of the following conditions are met:

             A.   The sale, delivery, or transfer is made to:

                     A person who is licensed, as specified.
                     A wholesaler.
                     A licensed manufacturer or importer of firearms or  
                 ammunition.

             A.   The firearm is not subject to any of the following:

                     The firearm is a nuisance weapon subject to  
                 surrender, as specified.
                     The firearm is unclaimed, abandoned, or subject to  
                 destruction, as specified.

          1.Requires an authorized law enforcement agency that is the  
            registered owner of an institutional weapon, as defined, that  
            subsequently destroys that weapon to enter such information  
            into the AFS via the CLETS.  It also requires that any agency  
            without access to AFS to arrange with the sheriff of the  

                                                                CONTINUED





                                                                     AB 538
                                                                     Page  
          4

            county in which the agency is located to input this  
            information via CLETS.

          2.Exempts from the requirement that transaction be made through  
            a licensed dealer in the case of the sale, delivery, or  
            transfer of a firearm when made by an authorized law  
            enforcement representative of a city, county, city and county,  
            or of the state or federal government, if both of the  
            following conditions are met:

             A.   The sale, delivery, or transfer is made to

                     A wholesaler.
                     A licensed manufacturer or importer of firearms or  
                 ammunition.

             A.   The firearm is not subject to any of the following:

                     The firearm is a nuisance weapon subject to  
                 surrender, as specified.
                     The firearm is unclaimed, abandoned, or subject to  
                 destruction, as specified.

          1.Requires the register or record of electronic transfer for all  
            firearms to include the following additional information:

             A.   Any applicable waiting period exemption information.

             B.   A statement informing the purchaser, after his or her  
               ownership of a firearm, of all of the following:

                     Upon his or her application, DOJ shall furnish him  
                 or her any information reported to the department as it  
                 relates to his or her ownership of that firearm.

                     The purchaser is entitled to file a report of his or  
                 her acquisition, disposition, or ownership of a firearm  
                 with the DOJ.

                     Instructions for accessing the DOJ's Internet  
                 website for more information.

             A.   The dealer's signature indicating delivery of the  
               firearm.

                                                                CONTINUED





                                                                     AB 538
                                                                     Page  
          5


             B.   The purchaser's signature indicating that the firearm is  
               delivered to him or her.

          1.Requires the firearms dealer to provide a copy of the  
            register, electronic transfer, or telephonic transfer,  
            whichever is applicable, to the purchaser at the time of  
            delivery of the firearm and after the dealer notes the date of  
            delivery, and provides a signature indicating the delivery and  
            the purchaser acknowledges the receipt of the firearm.

          2.Makes a number of technical, non-substantive changes.

           Comments
           
          According to the author, this bill provides additional consumer  
          protections by requiring the dealer to obtain a signature when  
          delivering the gun to the consumer; giving the consumer the  
          dealer record of sale form at that time as a receipt and,  
          improves the manner in which law enforcement reports  
          acquisitions, ownership, and disposition of firearms obtained in  
          the course and scope of their duties. With the surge in sales  
          and increase of dealer record of sale forms, it is important and  
          in the best interest of ensuring the public's safety to ensure  
          accuracy.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  Yes

          According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:

                 One-time administrative costs to the Department of  
               Justice (DOJ) of $143,000 (Special Fund*) in Fiscal Year  
               (FY) 2013-14 and $27,000 (Special Fund*) in FY 2014-15 to  
               develop and modify the Automated Firearm System (AFS) to  
               accommodate the new record information requirements.

                 Minor ongoing non-reimbursable local law enforcement  
               costs.

          *Dealer Record of Sale (DROS) Special Account

           SUPPORT :   (Verified  6/25/13)


                                                                CONTINUED





                                                                     AB 538
                                                                     Page  
          6

          California American College of Emergency Physicians

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  50-23, 5/20/13
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Ammiano, Atkins, Bloom, Blumenfield,  
            Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown, Buchanan, Ian  
            Calderon, Campos, Chau, Cooley, Daly, Dickinson, Eggman, Fong,  
            Frazier, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gray, Hall, Roger  
            Hernández, Levine, Lowenthal, Medina, Mitchell, Mullin,  
            Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Quirk,  
            Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner, Stone, Ting, Weber,  
            Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez
          NOES:  Allen, Bigelow, Chávez, Conway, Dahle, Donnelly, Beth  
            Gaines, Gorell, Grove, Hagman, Harkey, Jones, Linder,  
            Maienschein, Mansoor, Melendez, Morrell, Nestande, Olsen,  
            Patterson, Wagner, Waldron, Wilk
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Chesbro, Fox, Holden, Jones-Sawyer, Logue,  
            Vacancy, Vacancy


          JG:nl  6/26/13   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

                                   ****  END  ****





















                                                                CONTINUED