BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de León, Chair
SB 683 (Block) - Firearms: firearm safety certificate.
Amended: April 1, 2013 Policy Vote: Public Safety 5-2
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: May 23, 2013 Consultant: Jolie Onodera
SUSPENSE FILE. AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED.
Bill Summary: SB 683 would extend to all firearms the
requirement under current law that requires all handgun
purchasers to obtain a safety certificate prior to taking
possession of a handgun, as specified.
Fiscal Impact:
One-time costs of $716,000 (Special Fund*) over two years
to the Department of Justice (DOJ) to update program
materials including safety guides, certificates, the written
test, safety video, and related materials. Costs to be fully
covered by fees.
Annual DOJ enforcement costs of about $500,000 (Special
Fund*) to be covered by the $15 transaction fee.
Non-reimbursable local enforcement costs offset to a
degree by fine revenue.
Non-reimbursable local incarceration costs to the extent
persons are convicted of the misdemeanor offenses of
falsifying a firearm safety certificate or conducting
transactions involving a firearm without a valid firearm
safety certificate.
*Firearm Safety and Enforcement Special Fund
Background: Under existing law, no person may purchase,
transfer, receive, or sell a handgun without a handgun safety
certificate (HSC). There is not a similar requirement for other
firearms under current law. A violation of the HSC requirement
is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in county jail,
a fine of up to $1,000, or both. In addition, any person who
falsifies a HSC to purchase a handgun is guilty of a
misdemeanor. Current law provides an exemption to specified
persons including honorably retired members of the armed forces
from the HSC requirement.
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HSC applicants are required to pass a written test developed by
the DOJ that covers current firearms law, basic firearms safety
with respect to carrying and handling firearms, particularly
handguns, safe storage, the responsibilities of firearms
ownership, and the risks associated with bringing a firearm into
the home. Tests are administered by DOJ-certified instructors
who have a prescribed minimum level of skill, knowledge, and
training in firearms safety. The HSC expires five years after
the date of issuance.
Proposed Law: This bill would extend to all firearms the
requirement under current law that requires all handgun
purchasers to obtain a safety certificate prior to taking
possession of a handgun. Specifically, this bill would prohibit
a person from purchasing or receiving any firearm without a
valid firearm safety certificate, and would prohibit any person
from selling, delivering, loaning, or transferring any firearm
to any person who does not have a valid firearm safety
certificate. This bill would make conforming changes to statutes
regarding HSCs.
Prior Legislation: SB 52 (Scott) Chapter 942/2001 repealed the
Basic Firearms Safety and Certificate and replaced it with the
HSC program effective January 1, 2003.
Related Legislation: This measure is part of the following
legislative package deemed the Lifesaving Intelligent Firearms
Enforcement (LIFE) Act:
SB 47 (Yee) 2013 would revise the definition of assault weapon
to include a firearm that has one of several specified features
and does not have a "fixed magazine" as defined. This bill would
require the registration of specified lawfully possessed assault
weapons that do not have a fixed magazine, as defined, with the
DOJ. This bill is scheduled to be heard today by this committee.
SB 53 (De Leon) 2013 would require the sale, purchase, and
transfer of ammunition to be subject to additional regulations,
as specified. This bill would 1) require ammunition purchasers
to obtain an ammunition purchase permit and complete a
background check prior to any transaction, and, 2) require DOJ
to maintain records of all ammunition vendor licenses and
purchase permits issued, as well as all ammunition sales. This
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bill is scheduled to be heard today by this committee.
SB 140 (Leno) 2013 Chapter 2/2013, an urgency measure,
appropriates $24 million from the DROS Special Account to the
DOJ to address the backlog of unlawfully held firearms in the
Armed Prohibited Persons System (APPS). This bill was signed by
the Governor on May 1, 2013.
SB 374 (Steinberg) 2013 would 1) redefine the definition of what
rifles would be considered assault weapons, 2) provide a
definition for both "fixed magazine" and "detachable magazine,"
3) require the registration of specified lawfully possessed
assault weapons with the DOJ, and, 4) enact provisions
establishing a Firearm Ownership Record, as specified. This bill
is scheduled to be heard today by this committee.
SB 396 (Hancock) 2013 would ban the possession of large-capacity
ammunition magazines capable of holding more than 10 rounds, and
would require the disposal of any large-capacity magazine, as
defined, in specified ways. This bill is scheduled to be heard
today by this committee.
SB 567 (Jackson) 2013 would revise the definition of shotgun to
1) delete language stating that to be considered a shotgun, the
weapon must be intended to be fired from the shoulder, and 2)
add language stating a shotgun may include a weapon with a
rifled bore as well as a smooth bore. This bill is scheduled to
be heard today by this committee.
SB 755 (Wolk) 2013 expands the list of misdemeanors that result
in a 10-year prohibition from firearms possession to include
drug and alcohol-related offenses. This bill is scheduled to be
heard today by this committee.
Staff Comments: Extending the certificate program from handguns
to all firearms will result in increased one-time costs to the
DOJ of $716,000 from the Firearm Safety and Enforcement Special
Fund to update program materials, develop revised safety guides,
certificates, and a written test.
The DOJ will also incur increased ongoing enforcement costs of
about $500,000 per year that is projected to be fully covered by
the $15 transaction fee per test administered for long gun
purchasers who previously were not required to obtain a firearm
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safety certificate.
To the extent the provisions of this bill serve to reduce the
incidence of firearms-related injuries and death, potential
future cost savings could be substantial. A study by the
non-profit Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE)
reported over 105,000 incidences of firearm injury and death in
2010 nationally, with an estimated societal cost of over $174
billion in work lost, medical care, insurance, criminal justice
expenses, and pain and suffering. At a unit level, the study
reported a governmental cost of $187,000 to $582,000 per firearm
fatality in medical and mental health care, emergency services,
and administrative and criminal justice costs. The estimated
societal cost per firearm injury or fatality, including lost
work productivity and quality of life was reported at nearly
$430,000 to $5 million, respectively.
Recommended Amendments: Staff recommends a delayed
implementation date be added to the bill in order to provide the
DOJ with an adequate timeframe within which to update all
materials in preparation for the firearm safety certificate
requirement. The necessary testing and program materials will
not be available upon the bill's enactment date of January 1,
2014.
Author amendments delay implementation of the bill's provisions
to January 1, 2015.