BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 2165
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
2165 (Bonta)
As Amended April 7, 2016
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Public Safety |5-0 |Melendez, Lackey, | |
| | |Lopez, Low, Santiago | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY: Provides that any peace officer who has completed the
Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) course
in the carrying and use of a firearm shall be exempt from the
state prohibition relating to the sale or purchase of an unsafe
handgun.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Requires, commencing January 1, 2001, that any person in
California who manufactures or causes to be manufactured,
imports into the state for sale, keeps for sale, offers or
exposes for sale, gives, or lends any unsafe handgun shall be
punished by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one
AB 2165
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year.
a) Specifies that this section shall not apply to any of
the following:
i) The manufacture in California, or importation into
this state, of any prototype pistol, revolver, or other
firearm capable of being concealed upon the person when
the manufacture or importation is for the sole purpose of
allowing an independent laboratory certified by the
Department of Justice (DOJ) to conduct an independent
test to determine whether that pistol, revolver, or other
firearm capable of being concealed upon the person is
prohibited, inclusive, and, if not, allowing the
department to add the firearm to the roster of pistols,
revolvers, and other firearms capable of being concealed
upon the person that may be sold in this.
ii) The importation or lending of a pistol, revolver, or
other firearm capable of being concealed upon the person
by employees or authorized agents of entities determining
whether the weapon is prohibited by this section.
iii) Firearms listed as curios or relics, as defined in
federal law.
iv) The sale or purchase of any pistol, revolver, or
other firearm capable of being concealed upon the person,
if the pistol, revolver, or other firearm is sold to, or
purchased by, the Department of Justice, any police
department, any sheriff's official, any marshal's office,
the Youth and Adult Correctional Agency, the California
Highway Patrol, any district attorney's office, or the
military or naval forces of this state or of the United
States for use in the discharge of their official duties.
Nor shall anything in this section prohibit the sale to,
or purchase by, sworn members of these agencies of any
pistol, revolver, or other firearm capable of being
concealed upon the person.
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2)Specifies that violations of the unsafe handgun provisions are
cumulative with respect to each handgun and shall not be
construed as restricting the application of any other law.
3)Defines "unsafe handgun" as any pistol, revolver, or other
firearm capable of being concealed upon the person, as
specified, which lacks various safety mechanisms, as
specified.
4)Requires any concealable firearm manufactured in California,
imported for sale, kept for sale, or offered for sale to be
tested within a reasonable period of time by an independent
laboratory, certified by the state DOJ, to determine whether
it meets required safety standards, as specified.
5)Requires DOJ, on and after January 1, 2001, to compile,
publish, and thereafter maintain a roster listing all of the
pistols, revolvers, and other firearms capable of being
concealed upon the person that have been tested by a certified
testing laboratory, have been determined not to be unsafe
handguns, and may be sold in this state, as specified. The
roster shall list, for each firearm, the manufacturer, model
number, and model name.
6)Provides that DOJ may charge every person in California who is
licensed as a manufacturer of firearms, as specified, and any
person in California who manufactures or causes to be
manufactured, imports into California for sale, keeps for
sale, or offers or exposes for sale any pistol, revolver, or
other firearm capable of being concealed upon the person in
California, an annual fee not exceeding the costs of
preparing, publishing, and maintaining the roster of firearms
determined not be unsafe, and the costs of research and
development, report analysis, firearms storage, and other
program infrastructure costs, as specified.
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FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS: "AB 2165 is a simple clarification allowing trained
peace officers to continue to carry and use their existing
firearms for use in the discharge of their official duties.
Many of these officers have been issued these weapons by their
departments over the past several years, but recent changes in
interpretation by the Department of Justice has put these
officers in limbo and created a risk of legal and financial
liability. This has affected agencies up and down the state,
from more specialized police departments that do not serve a
particular municipality, to probation departments, and finally
the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control and the Department
of Insurance. These categories of peace officers participate in
mutual aid situations, task forces, sting operations and
arrests-all high-risk situations require that these officers be
properly armed. It is imperative that we provide the statutory
basis for the parity between agencies that has existed since the
creation of the roster."
Analysis Prepared by:
Gregory Pagan/ PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744 FN:
0002733
AB 2165
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