BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1182|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1182
Author: Santiago (D), et al.
Amended: 8/18/15 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE: 6-1, 7/14/15
AYES: Hancock, Anderson, Leno, Liu, Monning, Stone
NOES: Glazer
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 6/1/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Secondhand goods: tangible personal property
SOURCE: California Association of Resellers, Reusers and
Buyers
DIGEST: This bill defines items that constitute a significant
class of stolen goods that secondhand dealers must report to law
enforcement upon acquisition and requires the Attorney General
to annually update and post on her website the list of property
that secondhand dealers must report.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1) Defines a "secondhand dealer" as any person, co-partnership,
firm, or corporation whose business includes buying, selling,
trading, taking in pawn, accepting for sale on consignment,
accepting for auctioning, or auctioning secondhand tangible
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personal property and specifies that a "secondhand dealer"
does not include a coin dealer or participant at gun shows or
events, as specified. (Bus. and Prof. Code § 21626, subd.
(a).)
2) Specifies that "secondhand dealers" do not include persons
who perform the services of an auctioneer for a fee or salary
or persons whose business is limited to the reconditioning
and selling of major household appliances, as long as
specified conditions are met. (Bus. and Prof. Code §
21626.5.)
3) States that "tangible personal property" includes, but is
not limited to, all secondhand tangible personal property
which bears a serial number or personalized initials or
inscription, or which at the time it is acquired by the
secondhand dealer, bears evidence of having had a serial
number or personalized initials or inscription. (Bus. and
Prof. Code § 21627, subd. (a).)
4) States that tangible personal property also includes, but is
not limited to, the following:
a) All tangible personal property, new or used, including
motor vehicles, received in pledge as security for a loan
by a pawnbroker;
b) All tangible personal property that bears a serial
number or personalized initials or inscription which is
purchased by a secondhand dealer or a pawnbroker or which,
at the time of such purchase, bears evidence of having had
a serial number or personalized initials or inscription;
and,
c) All personal property commonly sold by secondhand
dealers which statistically is found through crime reports
to the DOJ to constitute a significant class of stolen
goods. A list of such personal property shall be supplied
by the DOJ to all local law enforcement agencies. The
list shall be reviewed periodically by the DOJ to insure
that it addresses current problems with stolen goods.
(Bus. and Prof. Code § 21627, subd. (b).)
5) Specifies that "tangible personal property" does not include
any new goods or merchandise purchased from a bona fide
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manufacturer, distributor, or wholesaler of such new goods or
merchandise by a secondhand dealer, and requires a secondhand
dealer to retain for one year from the date of purchase, and
make available for inspection by any law enforcement officer,
any receipt, invoice, bill of sale or other evidence of
purchase of such new goods or merchandise. (Bus. and Prof.
Code § 21627, subd. (c))
6) Specifies that "tangible personal property" does not include
coins, monetized bullion, or commercial grade ingots of gold,
silver, or other precious metals, as specified. (Bus. and
Prof. Code § 21627, subd. (d).)
7) Requires every secondhand dealer or coin dealer, as defined,
to report daily, or on the first working day after receipt or
purchase of secondhand tangible personal property, on forms
or through an electronic reporting system approved by the
Department of Justice (DOJ), all secondhand tangible personal
property, except for firearms, which he or she has purchased,
taken in trade, taken in pawn, accepted for sale on
consignment, or accepted for auctioning, to the chief of
police or to the sheriff, as specified. (Bus. and Prof. Code
§ 21628)
8) Requires the report to be legible, prepared in English,
completed where applicable, and include, but not be limited
to, the following information: (Bus. and Prof. Code §
21628)
a) The name and current address of the intended seller or
pledger of the property;
b) The identification of the intended seller or pledger,
as specified;
c) A complete and reasonably accurate description of
serialized property, including, but not limited to: serial
number and other identifying marks or symbols,
owner-applied numbers, manufacturer's named brand, and
model name or number;
d) A complete and reasonably accurate description of
non-serialized property, including, but not limited to:
size, color, material, manufacturer's pattern name (when
known), owner-applied numbers and personalized
inscriptions, and other identifying marks or symbols;
e) A certification by the intended seller or pledger that
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he or she is the owner of the property or has the
authority of the owner to sell or pledge the property.
f) A certification by the intended seller or pledger that
to his or her knowledge and belief the information is true
and complete;
g) A legible fingerprint taken from the intended seller
or pledger, as specified; and,
h) When a secondhand dealer complies with all of the
provisions of this section, he or she shall be deemed to
have received from the seller or pledger adequate evidence
of authority to sell or pledge the property, as specified.
9) Requires the DOJ, in consultation with appropriate local law
enforcement agencies, to develop clear and comprehensive
descriptive categories denoting tangible personal property,
as specified. (Bus. and Prof. Code § 21628, subd. (j).)
10)Requires the DOJ to develop a single, statewide, uniform,
electronic reporting system to be used to transmit required
secondhand dealer reports, as specified. (Bus. and Prof.
Code § 21628, subd. (j)(1).)
11)Requires secondhand and coin dealers to hold for a period of
30 days any tangible personal property acquired before
disposing of the property. Pawnbrokers must wait for a
period of four months before disposing of tangible personal
property that is acquired. For purposes of this Section,
tangible personal property means property that must be
reported to law enforcement upon acquisition by the reporting
entity or party. (Bus. and Prof. Code § 21636.)
This bill:
1)Eliminates the statutory provision stating that the definition
of tangible personal property is not limited to the
specifically listed or enumerated property.
2)Defines "tangible personal property" to mean only the forms of
property specifically listed or enumerated in current law:
serialized property, property with personalized initials or
inscriptions, property that bears evidence of previously
having a serial number, initials or inscription, and all
personal property that the Attorney General statistically
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determines through the "Crime in California Report" to
constitute a statistically significant class of stolen goods.
3)Defines "a statistically significant class of stolen goods" as
those items found to constitute more than 10% of property
reported as stolen in the annual "Crime in California" report.
4)Requires the Attorney General to annually update its list of
personal property commonly sold by secondhand dealers that
constitutes a statistically significant class of stolen goods
and post the list on the Attorney General's website.
5)Specifies that a secondhand goods dealer need only verify and
record the identity of the person selling property once per
transaction, not as to each item sold in a transaction,
although each item obtained by the dealer must be reported.
Background
In 2012, AB 391 (Pan) established a new requirement that
secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers electronically report to the
DOJ all secondhand tangible property which has been purchased,
taken in trade, taken in pawn, accepted for sale on consignment
or accepted for auctioning. Licensed secondhand dealers and
pawnbrokers use must the new system - the California Automated
Pawn and Secondhand Dealer System (CAPPS) - to do so.
A March 19, 2015 letter from DOJ to pawnbrokers and secondhand
dealers stated:
[DOJ] was mandated pursuant to Assembly Bill 391 (Stats
2012, Ch. 172, Pan) to develop and implement a statewide,
uniform electronic reporting system that would allow for
the electronic reporting of property transaction reports
?The initial California Pawn and Secondhand Dealer System
(CAPSS)? was implemented by the DOJ in December 2014.
?DOJ and its contractor have been working diligently on
phase-in improvements [and] ?announces [that] these
improvements are nearing readiness. ?A few of CAPPS
capabilities include an auto registration component,
multiple property transaction bulk upload, and an
advanced licensing application for law enforcement [to]
?streamline the licensing process.
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The utilization of the electronic database is not intended to
change the kinds of property that must be reported by secondhand
dealers. Nevertheless, the CAPSS Website includes an Excel table
with a code number for reporting each of over 800 items, from
accordions to zithers. The list includes bee hives, beer kegs,
defibrillators, ladders, pavers, parking meters, pottery wheels,
roller blades, shocks, tillers, timing light, toilets and wheel
chairs. Clearly this does not constitute the list of items that
must be reported by secondhand dealers. However, it does appear
that under the CAPSS system any kind of property that becomes
commonly stolen could be readily reported.
Arguably, the optimal list of reportable goods would include
readily reportable and identifiable property that can be matched
against police reports of stolen goods. An overly broad
reporting requirement could be onerous for secondhand dealers,
yet produce data that is mostly of no value to law enforcement.
An overly broad requirement could reduce compliance,
paradoxically reducing reports of recoverable stolen property.
The only kinds of property the secondhand goods reporting
statute specifically describes are serialized and initialed
property. The statute also requires secondhand dealers to
report property "commonly sold by secondhand dealers which
statistically is found through crime reports to the Attorney
General to constitute a significant class of stolen goods." The
statute directs the Attorney General to update the list
periodically. The current list has not been updated for some
time and includes only jewelry and sterling silver.
DOJ is required by statute to collect data from law enforcement
agencies about "the amount and types of offenses known to the
public authorities." DOJ has great latitude as to how data must
be reported. DOJ can direct law enforcement agencies to
include in reports the kinds of property stolen in theft,
burglary and robbery offenses. (Pen. Code §§ 13000, 13002 and
13020
As noted above, the governing statute requires DOJ to
statistically determine property constituting a "significant
class of stolen goods" commonly sold by secondhand dealers. The
statute does not define "significant." The statute also does
not provide how DOJ is to determine which property is "commonly
sold by secondhand dealers." The bill was amended in Senate
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Public Safety to provide that "significant" be defined as
property constituting 10% of the kinds of property reported
stolen as determined by and through the "Crime in California"
report published annually by DOJ and to delete the reference to
goods commonly sold by secondhand dealers. The CAPPS electronic
reporting system will provide consistency in the form and
analysis of reporting. Arguably, the requirements for the
contents of the reports should be similarly consistent if the
full benefits of the electronic system in finding stolen
property and prosecuting thieves are to be realized.
The sponsor has noted that secondhand dealers often obtain goods
in sets or matched collections. This is especially true for
purchases of property from an estate sale. The dealer may buy a
set of furniture, china or other combined goods. In such cases,
the dealer should be allowed to obtain a single identification
and fingerprint of the seller, not a separate identification and
print for each item. This bill specifically authorizes
secondhand dealers to verify the identity of the seller once per
transaction.
The Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District, recently
considered whether a secondhand dealer or pawnbroker must comply
with a local ordinance requiring reporting of property that need
not be reported under state law. The court held that a
Sacramento County ordinance imposing additional reporting
requirements was preempted by state law. (Collateral Loan and
Secondhand Dealers Association v. County Of Sacramento (2014)
223 Cal.App.4th 1032, 1042-1043.)
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
SUPPORT: (Verified 8/26/15)
California Association of Resellers, Reusers and Buyers (source)
Antiques by the Bay
Californians Against Waste
City of Alameda
Home Consignment Center
Sacramento Antique Faire
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OPPOSITION: (Verified 8/26/15)
California Police Chiefs Association
California State Sheriffs' Association
Secondhand Collectors Association (unless amended)
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 6/1/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang,
Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle,
Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia,
Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray,
Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea,
Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Beth Gaines
Prepared by:Jerome McGuire / PUB. S. /
8/26/15 14:40:38
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