BILL ANALYSIS Ó ----------------------------------------------------------------- |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1135| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- THIRD READING Bill No: AB 1135 Author: Levine (D) and Ting (D), et al. Amended: 5/11/16 in Senate Vote: 21 SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 5-2, 5/10/16 AYES: Hancock, Glazer, Leno, Liu, Monning NOES: Anderson, Stone SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 5-2, 5/16/16 AYES: Lara, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza NOES: Bates, Nielsen ASSEMBLY FLOOR: Not relevant SUBJECT: Firearms: assault weapons SOURCE: Author DIGEST: This bill (1) amends the definition of assault weapon to refer to a firearm that has one of several specified military-style features and does not have a "fixed magazine" rather than a firearm that has one of those features and "has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine;" (2) defines "fixed magazine" as "an ammunition feeding device contained in, or permanently attached to, a firearm in such a manner that the device cannot be removed without disassembly of the firearm action;" (3) provides that any person who was eligible to register an assault weapon and lawfully possessed such a weapon prior to January 1, 2017, will be exempt from penalties, if the person registers the weapon by January 1, 2018; (4) requires that any person who from January 1, 2001, to December 31, 2016, lawfully possessed an assault weapon that does not have a fixed magazine, as defined, register the firearm before January 1, AB 1135 Page 2 2018, with the Department of Justice (DOJ), as specified; (5) provides that this registration be submitted online, as specified; (6) authorizes DOJ to charge a fee of up to $15 per person but not to exceed the reasonable processing costs of the department for this registration; and (7) requires DOJ to establish procedures for the purpose of carrying out this registration requirement and to specify that these procedures shall be exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act. ANALYSIS: Existing law: 1)Contains legislative findings and declarations that the proliferation and use of assault and .50 BMG rifles poses a threat to the health, safety, and security of all citizens of California. (Penal Code § 30505.) 2)States legislative intent to place restrictions on the use of assault weapons and .50 BMG rifles and to establish a registration and permit procedure for their lawful sale and possession. (Penal Code § 30505.) 3)Defines "assault weapon" as one of certain specified rifles and pistols (Penal Code § 30510) or as: a) A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and has at least one of the following: a pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon; a thumbhole stock; a vertical handgrip; a folding or telescoping stock; a grenade launcher or flare launcher; a flash suppressor; or, a forward handgrip. b) A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has a fixed magazine with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds; c) A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has an overall AB 1135 Page 3 length of less than 30 inches; d) A semiautomatic pistol that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and has at least one of the following: a threaded barrel, capable of accepting a flash suppressor, forward handgrip, or silencer; a second handgrip; a shroud that is attached to, or partially or completely encircles, the barrel that allows the bearer to fire the weapon without burning his or her hand, excepting a slide that encloses the barrel; or, the capacity to accept a detachable magazine at some location outside of the pistol grip. e) A semiautomatic pistol with a fixed magazine that has the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds; f) A semiautomatic shotgun that has both of the following: a folding or telescoping stock; and a pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon, thumbhole stock, or vertical handgrip. g) A semiautomatic shotgun that has the ability to accept a detachable magazine; and h) Any shotgun that has a revolving cylinder. (Penal Code § 30515.) 4)Defines a "detachable magazine" as any ammunition feeding device that can be removed readily from the firearm with neither disassembly of the firearm action nor use of a tool being required. A bullet or ammunition cartridge is considered a tool. Ammunition feeding device includes any belted or linked ammunition, but does not include clips, en bloc clips, or stripper clips that load cartridges into the magazine. (11 Cal. Code of Regs. § 5469.) 5)Provides that unlawful possession of an assault weapon is an alternate felony-misdemeanor and shall be punished by imprisonment in a county jail for a period not exceeding one year, or by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 (16 months, two or three years). Notwithstanding the above, a first violation of these provisions is punishable AB 1135 Page 4 by a fine not exceeding $500 if the person was found in possession of no more than two firearms and certain specified conditions are met. (Penal Code § 30605.) 6)Provides that any person who within California manufactures, imports into California, offers for sale, or who gives or lends any assault weapon with specified exceptions is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment in state prison for four, six, or eight years. (Penal Code § 30600.) 7)Defines a ".50 BMG rifle and cartridge," as specified. (Penal Code §§ 30525, 30530.) 8)Exempts the DOJ, law enforcement agencies, military forces, and other specified agencies from the prohibition against sales to, purchase by, importation of, or possession of assault weapons or .50 BMG rifles. (Penal Code § 30625.) 9)Requires that any person who lawfully possesses an assault weapon, as specified, must register the firearm with DOJ, as specified. (Penal Code § 30900 et. seq.) This bill: 1)Amends the definition of assault weapon to refer to a firearm that has one of several specified features and does not have a "fixed magazine" rather than a firearm with one of those features and the "capacity to accept a detachable magazine." 2)Defines "fixed magazine" as "an ammunition feeding device contained in, or permanently attached to, a firearm in such a manner that the device cannot be removed without disassembly of the firearm action." 3)Provides that, notwithstanding the new definition of assault weapon contained in this bill, any person who possessed an assault weapon prior to January 1, 2017, is exempt from punishment pursuant to Section 30605, if all of the following are applicable: a) Prior to January 1, 2017, the person was eligible to register that assault weapon pursuant to subdivision (c) of AB 1135 Page 5 Section 30900; b) The person lawfully possessed that assault weapon on January 1, 2017; and c) The person registers the assault weapon by January 1, 2018, as specified. 4)Provides that any person who, from January 1, 2001, to December 31, 2016, inclusive, lawfully possessed an assault weapon that does not have a fixed magazine, as defined in Section 30515, including those weapons with an ammunition feeding device that can be removed readily from the firearm with the use of a tool, shall register the firearm before January 1, 2018, with the department pursuant to those procedures that the department may establish. a) Registrations shall be submitted electronically via the Internet utilizing a public-facing application made available by the department. b) The registration shall contain a description of the firearm that identifies it uniquely, including all identification marks, the date the firearm was acquired, the name and address of the individual from whom, or business from which, the firearm was acquired, as well as the registrant's full name, address, telephone number, date of birth, sex, height, weight, eye color, hair color, and California driver's license number or California identification card number. c) The department may charge a fee of up to $15 per person but not to exceed the reasonable processing costs of the department. The fee shall be paid by debit or credit card at the time that the electronic registration is submitted to the department. The fee shall be deposited in the Dealers' Record of Sale (DROS) Special Account. d) The department shall establish procedures for the purpose of carrying out this subdivision. These procedures shall be exempt from the Administrative Procedure Act. AB 1135 Page 6 Background As the Court of Appeal explained, in 1999, the Assault Weapons ban was amended to expand the definition of an assault weapon to include a definition by the generic characteristics, specifically, to include a "semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine" in addition to one of several specified characteristics, such as a grenade launcher or flash suppressor. (SB 23 (Perata, Chapter 129, Statutes of 1999, § 7 et seq.) SB 23 was enacted in response to the marketing of so-called "copycat" weapons, firearms that were substantially similar to weapons on the prohibited list but differed in some insignificant way, perhaps only the name of the weapon, thereby defeating the intent of the ban. "SB 23 takes weapons that are made, then modified, named and re-named off the market. It fixes the loophole in current law that bans guns by name, not by capability, by providing a generic definition of the weapons." (Committee analysis of SB 23 (Perata), Assembly Public Safety Committee.) SB 23's generic definition of an assault weapon was intended to close the loophole in the law created by its definition of assault weapons as only those specified by make and model. Regulations promulgated after the enactment of SB 23 define a detachable magazine as "any ammunition feeding device that can be removed readily from the firearm with neither disassembly of the firearm action nor use of a tool being required. A bullet or ammunition cartridge is considered a tool." (11 CFR § 5469(a).) In response to this definition, a new feature has been developed by firearms manufacturers to make semi-automatic rifles "California compliant," the bullet button. In 2012, researchers at the nonprofit Violence Policy Center in Washington, D.C. released a paper describing the phenomenon of the bullet button and its effect on California's assault weapons ban: The "Bullet Button"-Assault Weapon Manufacturers' Gateway to the California Market Catalogs and websites from America's leading assault rifle manufacturers are full of newly designed AB 1135 Page 7 "California compliant" assault weapons. Number one and two assault weapon manufacturers Bushmaster and DPMS, joined by ArmaLite, Colt, Sig Sauer, Smith & Wesson, and others are all introducing new rifles designed to circumvent California's assault weapons ban and are actively targeting the state in an effort to lift now-sagging sales of this class of weapon. They are accomplishing this with the addition of a minor design change to their military-style weapons made possible by a definitional loophole: the "bullet button." [Please see the Appendix beginning on page six for 2012 catalog copy featuring "California compliant" assault rifles utilizing a "bullet button" from leading assault weapon manufacturers.] California law bans semiautomatic rifles with the capacity to accept a detachable ammunition magazine and any one of six enumerated additional assault weapon characteristics (e.g., folding stock, flash suppressor, pistol grip, or other military-style features). High-capacity detachable ammunition magazines allow shooters to expel large amounts of ammunition quickly and have no sporting purpose. [Department of the Treasury Study on the Sporting Suitability of Modified Semiautomatic Assault Rifles, April 1998. (Bullet Buttons, The Gun Industry's Attack on California's Assault Weapons Ban, Violence Policy Center, Washington D.C., May 2012.)] However, in California an ammunition magazine is not viewed as detachable if a "tool" is required to remove it from the weapon. The "bullet button" is a release button for the ammunition magazine that can be activated with the tip of a bullet. With the tip of the bullet replacing the use of a finger in activating the release, the button can be pushed and the detachable ammunition magazine removed and replaced in seconds. Compared to the release process for a standard detachable ammunition magazine it is a distinction without a difference. This bill amends the definition of assault weapon to a firearm that has one of several specified features and does not have a AB 1135 Page 8 "fixed magazine," rather than a firearm that has one of those features and "has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine." It also defines, "fixed magazine" as "an ammunition feeding device contained in, or permanently attached to, a firearm in such a manner that the device cannot be removed without disassembly of the firearm action." So, a semiautomatic rifle could have a detachable magazine, as long as it does not also have any features or it could have the features as long as it had a fixed magazine. The purpose of this change is to clarify that equipping a weapon with a "bullet button" magazine release does not take that weapon outside the definition of an assault weapon. This bill also requires any person who, from January 1, 2001, to December 31, 2016, lawfully possessed an assault weapon that does not have a fixed magazine, as defined, including those weapons with an ammunition feeding device that can be removed readily from the firearm with the use of a tool, in other words, those weapons with a "bullet button" magazine release, to register the firearm before January 1, 2018, with the department pursuant to those procedures that the department may establish. Because this bill clarifies that these are assault weapons, this provision is consistent with the existing law that requires assault weapons, lawfully possessed, to be registered with DOJ. FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.:YesLocal: Yes According to the Senate Appropriations Committee: Registration process: Estimated costs of $1.7 million in FY 2016-17, $1.5 million in FY 2017-18, and $37,000 (DROS Fund*/General Fund) annually thereafter, to be fully offset by fees collected from registrants once fully implemented. Appropriations staff notes the DROS Fund is structurally imbalanced, and current revenues are insufficient to cover the costs of this bill. As a result, a General Fund appropriation may be required to enable completion of the activities within the timelines prescribed. AB 1135 Page 9 State prisons: Potentially significant increase in annual state incarceration costs (General Fund) to the extent the narrower definition of "assault weapon" results in additional firearms violations. For every 10 new commitments to state prison (five each for manufacturing and possession), additional annual costs of $290,000, compounding to $1.2 million for overlapping sentences assuming the middle term of the triads for violations of both manufacturing and possession. Firearms sales: Potential near-term loss of sales tax revenue of $1.6 million (General Fund) per 10 percent of annual rifle sales in California. Future year impact could be somewhat mitigated to the extent consumers shift to purchases of alternative firearms. Local agencies: Potential future increase in local enforcement and incarceration costs for unlawful possession or sale/manufacture of assault weapons. APPS [Armed Prohibited Persons System] enforcement: Unknown, potential increase in DOJ enforcement costs (Special Fund*) to the extent additional persons are placed on the armed prohibited persons list resulting from the provisions of this bill. * DROS Special Account - Appropriations staff notes that the DROS Account is structurally imbalanced, with an estimated reserve balance of less than $1 million by year-end FY 2016-17. As a result, an appropriation from another fund source, potentially the General Fund, may be required to support the activities required by this bill. SUPPORT: (Verified5/17/16) California Chapters of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence Coalition Against Gun Violence, a Santa Barbara County Coalition Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence AB 1135 Page 10 OPPOSITION: (Verified5/17/16) California Sportsman's Lobby California State Sheriffs' Association Crossroads of the West Firearms Policy Coalition National Rifle Association National Shooting Sports Foundation Outdoor Sportsmen's Coalition of California Safari Club International Several Individuals ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: The California Chapters of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence state: California's existing assault weapons statute prohibits semi-automatic centerfire rifles or semiautomatic pistols that have the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and are equipped with any of the following features: a pistol grip, a thumbhole stock, a folding or telescoping stock, a grenade or flare launcher, a flash suppressor, or a forward pistol grip. These features are not found on sporting guns and were designed specifically to facilitate the killing of human beings in battle. The California Brady Campaign Chapters support prohibiting military-style semi-automatic assault weapons. The rapid and controlled spray of bullets associated with assault weapons is a threat to police officers, families, and communities. As was shown by the tragedy at Sandy Hook School and more recently in San Bernardino, an assault weapon escalates the lethality and number of victims in a mass shooting incident. Unfortunately, firearm manufactures have found ways to enable the dangerous quick reloading that the California's assault weapons law sought to ban. For example, the "bullet button" is a feature that enables the firearm owner to use a bullet or other pointed object to quickly detach and replace the weapon's ammunition magazine. Because the use of a bullet or other "tool" is required to remove the magazine, the sale of AB 1135 Page 11 bullet button-equipped guns has been allowed, even though the California assault weapons law prohibits weapons that have "the capacity to accept a detachable magazine." In fact, in the first eleven months after the retention of records for long guns became operational (January 1, 2014 to December 2, 2014), there were 50,574 sales or transfers of military-style weapons with a bullet-button or other similar feature that allows for the rapid exchange of the magazine. The California Brady Campaign Chapters support clarifying and strengthening California's assault weapons law as proposed by AB 1135. The bill recasts existing law by listing as assault weapons those firearms with military-style features that do not have a fixed magazine. A fixed magazine is defined as an ammunition feeding device contained in, or permanently attached to, a firearm in such a manner that the device cannot be removed without disassembly of the firearm action. A weapon that does not have a fixed magazine, as defined, and has any one of the military-style features would be unlawful. AB 1135 would require any person who lawfully possessed from January 1, 2001 to December 31, 2016 an assault weapon that does not have a fixed magazine as defined in the bill to register the weapon before January 1, 2018 with the California Department of Justice. This record would enable law enforcement to disarm the person through the Armed Prohibited Persons System program if the person were to become prohibited from possessing firearms and assist law enforcement in the tracing of crime guns. ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION:According to the National Rifle Association: AB 1135 would make serious changes to California's firearm laws - banning hundreds of thousands of constitutionally protected firearms that have no association with crime. These changes would happen quickly with great individual costs to many gun owners and no public notice. This bill has two major components. The first would change the definition of "detachable magazine," which would in turn AB 1135 Page 12 change expand the number of firearms that California considers "assault weapons." The process of defining "assault weapon" began with legislation authored by the late Assemblyman, Art Agnos, in 1985. The definition that became law in the Roberti-Roos Assault Weapon Control Act of 1989 has been modified or expanded multiple times since. AB 1135 would change the existing definition for detachable magazine to mean "an ammunition feeding device that can be removed readily from the firearm without disassembly of the firearm action, including an ammunition feeding device that can be removed readily from the firearm with the use of a tool." Changing the definition of "detachable magazine" would strike a major blow to competitive high-power rifle competition in California. "Bullet button" equipped rifles are also commonly used for hunting and self protection. AB 1135 would subject them to the onerous transfer and use restrictions imposed on "assault weapons" - and future sales in California would be banned. The owners of firearms covered by these proposed changes would have no way of knowing what was required of them. The widow of a firearm enthusiast who purchased a modern sporting rifle for varmint hunting, competition shooting and/or self-defense or the grandson who inherited his grandfather's rifle could and would easily become inadvertent criminals. The second element of this bill would require that on or before July 1, 2018, every individual who lawfully possesses a newly defined "assault weapon" must register it with the Department of Justice. This is not about crime control - it's a blatant attack on lawful gun owners. By banning what amounts to hundreds of thousands of commonly owned sporting rifles, AB 1135 plainly conflicts with the Second Amendment. As the Supreme Court noted, arms "typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes" or those "in common use" are protected. District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. at 624-25. Should AB 1135 be enacted, it will result in immediate litigation against the state to prevent enforcement of what amounts to a de facto ban on a massive number of lawfully-owned firearms AB 1135 Page 13 that have no association with crime. Prepared by:Jessica Devencenzi / PUB. S. / 5/18/16 16:21:32 **** END ****