BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Senator Loni Hancock, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: SB 566 Hearing Date: April 14, 2015
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|Author: |Bates |
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|Version: |February 26, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |No |
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|Consultant:|JRD |
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Subject: Firearms Safety Certificate
HISTORY
Source: Author
Prior Legislation: SB 683 (Block)-2013, Chap. 761, Stats. 2013
SB 1422 (Anderson)-2012, held in Senate
Appropriations
SB 404 (Anderson) - 2011, died in Senate Public
Safety
AB 2609 (Anderson) - 2010, failed passage in
Assembly Public Safety
AB 2152 (Neilson) - 2010, failed passage in
Assembly Public Safety
AB 201 (Samuelian) - 2004, failed passage in
Assembly Public Safety
AB 2081 (Briggs) - 2002, failed passage
in Assembly Public Safety
SB 1615 (Johannessen) - 2002, died in
Senate Public Safety
SB 52 (Scott) - Chap. 942, Stats. 2001
SB 731 (Thompson) - Chap. 6, Stats. 1992
Support: American Legion-Department of California;
AMVETS-Department of California; California Associate
of County Veterans Services Officers; California Rifle
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and Pistol Association, Inc.; Gun Owners of
California; Military Officers Association-California
Council of Chapters; Veterans of Foreign
Wars-Department of California; Vietnam Veterans of
America-California State Council
Opposition:The California Chapters of the Brady Campaign to
Prevent Gun Violence; Law Center to Prevent Gun
Violence
PURPOSE
The purpose of this bill is to expand the exemption from the
firearm safety certificate requirement that currently applies to
any active or honorably retired member of the military, as
specified, to include any honorably discharged member of the
military, as specified.
Existing law provides that no person shall do either of the
following:
Purchase or receive any firearm, except an antique
firearm, without a valid firearm safety certificate, except
that in the case of a handgun, an unexpired handgun safety
certificate may be used.
Sell, deliver, loan, or transfer any firearm, except an
antique firearm, to any person who does not have a valid
firearm safety certificate, except that in the case of a
handgun, an unexpired handgun safety certificate may be
used.
Any person who violates either of these provisions is guilty of
a misdemeanor, punishable by up to 6 months in county jail, a
fine of up to $1,000, or both.
(Penal Code § 31615.)
Existing law requires the license applicant to complete and pass
a written test prescribed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and
administered by an instructor certified by DOJ. The test shall
include:
The laws applicable to carrying and handling firearms,
particularly handguns;
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The responsibilities of ownership of firearms,
particularly handguns;
Current law as it relates to the sale and transfer of
firearms laws;
Current law as it relates to the permissible use of
lethal force;
What constitutes safe firearm storage;
Risks associated with bringing firearms into the home;
and,
Prevention strategies to address issues associated with
bringing firearms into the home.
(Penal Code § 31640.)
Existing law states that an applicant for a firearm safety
certificate who successfully passes the test, with a passing
grade of at least 75 percent, shall immediately be issued a
firearm safety certificate by the instructor. (Penal Code §
31645.)
Under existing law a certified instructor may charge a fee of
twenty-five dollars for the firearms safety certificate, fifteen
dollars of which must be paid to DOJ. (Penal Code § 31650.)
Existing law provides that DOJ is required to develop firearm
safety certificates to be issued by certified instructors to
those persons who have complied with specified requirements. A
firearm safety certificate shall include, but not be limited to,
the following information:
A unique firearm safety certificate identification
number;
The holder's full name;
The holder's date of birth;
The holder's driver's license or identification number;
The holder's signature;
The signature of the issuing instructor; and,
The date of issuance.
The firearm safety certificate expires five years after the date
that it was issued by the certified instructor. (Penal Code §
31655.)
Existing law exempts the following persons from having to obtain
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a firearm safety certificate in order to purchase a firearm:
Any active or honorably retired peace officer;
Any active or honorably retired federal officer or law
enforcement agent;
Any reserve peace officer;
Any person who has successfully completed the course of
training specified in Section 832;
A licensed firearms dealer, who is acting in the course
and scope of that person's licensed activities, as
specified;
A federally licensed collector who is acquiring or being
loaned a firearm that is a curio or relic, who has a
current certificate of eligibility issued by DOJ;
A person to whom a firearm is being returned, where the
person receiving the firearm is the owner of the firearm;
A family member of a peace officer or deputy sheriff
from a local agency, as specified;
Any individual who has a valid concealed weapons permit;
An active or honorably retired member of the United
States Armed Forces, the National Guard, the Air National
Guard, or the active reserve components of the United
States, where individuals in those organizations are
properly identified;
Any person who is authorized to carry loaded firearms,
as specified; and,
Persons who are the holders of a special weapons permit
issued by DOJ.
(Penal Code § 31700(a).)
Existing law exempts a person who takes title or possession of a
firearm by operation of law in a representative capacity from
the firearm safety certificate requirements. (Penal Code §
31700(b).)
Existing law states that a person, validly identified, who has
been issued a valid hunting license that is unexpired or that
was issued for the hunting season immediately preceding the
calendar year in which the person takes title of possession of a
firearm is exempt from the firearm safety certificate
requirement, except as to handguns. (Penal Code § 31700(c).)
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This bill would expand the exemption from the firearm safety
certificate requirement that currently applies to any active or
honorably retired member of the military, as specified, to
include any honorably discharged member of the military, as
specified.
RECEIVERSHIP/OVERCROWDING CRISIS AGGRAVATION
For the past eight years, this Committee has scrutinized
legislation referred to its jurisdiction for any potential
impact on prison overcrowding. Mindful of the United States
Supreme Court ruling and federal court orders relating to the
state's ability to provide a constitutional level of health care
to its inmate population and the related issue of prison
overcrowding, this Committee has applied its "ROCA" policy as a
content-neutral, provisional measure necessary to ensure that
the Legislature does not erode progress in reducing prison
overcrowding.
On February 10, 2014, the federal court ordered California to
reduce its in-state adult institution population to 137.5% of
design capacity by February 28, 2016, as follows:
143% of design bed capacity by June 30, 2014;
141.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2015; and,
137.5% of design bed capacity by February 28, 2016.
In February of this year the administration reported that as "of
February 11, 2015, 112,993 inmates were housed in the State's 34
adult institutions, which amounts to 136.6% of design bed
capacity, and 8,828 inmates were housed in out-of-state
facilities. This current population is now below the
court-ordered reduction to 137.5% of design bed capacity."(
Defendants' February 2015 Status Report In Response To February
10, 2014 Order, 2:90-cv-00520 KJM DAD PC, 3-Judge Court, Coleman
v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (fn. omitted).
While significant gains have been made in reducing the prison
population, the state now must stabilize these advances and
demonstrate to the federal court that California has in place
the "durable solution" to prison overcrowding "consistently
demanded" by the court. (Opinion Re: Order Granting in Part and
Denying in Part Defendants' Request For Extension of December
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31, 2013 Deadline, NO. 2:90-cv-0520 LKK DAD (PC), 3-Judge Court,
Coleman v. Brown, Plata v. Brown (2-10-14). The Committee's
consideration of bills that may impact the prison population
therefore will be informed by the following questions:
Whether a proposal erodes a measure which has contributed
to reducing the prison population;
Whether a proposal addresses a major area of public safety
or criminal activity for which there is no other
reasonable, appropriate remedy;
Whether a proposal addresses a crime which is directly
dangerous to the physical safety of others for which there
is no other reasonably appropriate sanction;
Whether a proposal corrects a constitutional problem or
legislative drafting error; and
Whether a proposal proposes penalties which are
proportionate, and cannot be achieved through any other
reasonably appropriate remedy.
COMMENTS
1. Need for This Legislation
According to the Author:
California is home to the largest number of veterans,
with nearly 2 million living here. Some veterans are
discharged from the service for a wide range of
reasons. "Honorably discharged veterans" have the
highest form of discharge from the service. This means
that a veteran has separated from the military with
honor and they have met or exceeded the standards of
duty, performance, and personal conduct.
Effective January 1, 2015, SB 683 (Block, 2013) went
into effect. This measure replaced the Handgun Safety
Certificate program with the Firearm Safety
Certificate (FSC) program. The FSC program not only
applies to the purchase of handguns, but now applies
to the purchase of all firearms (handguns and long
guns), unless one falls under the list of current
exemptions. For hand gun purchases with a valid
certificate, handguns may still be purchased until the
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certificate expires. Long guns purchased after the
first of this year will now require a FSC.
The FSC program requires a simple, multiple choice
test on general firearm safety. Veterans have already
received many hours of firearm safety training. Most
firearms dealerships have the capability to give this
test on-site and it normally doesn't take more than a
few minutes to complete. This certificate does NOT
bypass an individual from being subject to the full
background check and waiting period required by law.
According to the Attorney General's website, there are
seventeen exemptions from the FSC requirement, 3 of
which are specific to members of the military. Active
duty, reserve or honorably retired veterans are
entitled to receive this exemption and therefore do
not have to obtain a FSC in order to purchase a new
gun. For no known reason, honorably discharged
members of the United States military were left off
the list of exemptions for veterans.
Given the exemptions that are currently in effect for
the FSC program, it only makes sense to expand the
exemptions to include honorably discharged veterans.
It is important to note that SB 566 by no means
exempts any individual from still having to go through
the ENTIRE background check to purchase a firearm.
Full backgrounds will still take place at any licensed
dealer for any individual seeking to purchase a
firearm. SB 566 simply seeks to include these
honorably discharged veterans under the same exemption
already allowed for active duty, reserve, or honorably
retired veterans.
2. History of SB 52 - Military Exemption
The law prior to 2001 exempted all honorably discharged veterans
from obtaining a Basic Firearms Safety Certificate and under the
new Handgun Safety Licensing Program, enacted by SB 52, that
exemption was narrowed to include only honorably retired
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veterans.<1> Legislative history indicates that narrowing of
the exemption was deliberate.
SB 52 (Scott), Chapter 942, Statutes of 2001, repealed the Basic
Firearms Safety and Certificate Program and replaced that
program with the more stringent Handgun Safety Licensing
Program. SB 52 provided that, effective January 1, 2003, no
person may purchase, transfer, receive, or sell a handgun
without a Handgun Safety Certificate (HSC). As introduced, SB
52 contained no exemption for retired or discharged veterans.
SB 52 was amended April 5, 2001 to include an exemption to the
HSC requirement for active military and military reserve
personnel. SB 52 was amended again on June 4, 2001 and added
honorably retired members of the military to the military
exemption provision. The much broader category of all honorably
discharged members of the military was never included in the
military exemption contained in SB 52.
WAS THE NARROWING OF THE VETERANS EXEMPTION FROM THE HANDGUN
SAFETY LICENSING PROGRAM INTENTIONAL?
3. Does Military Service Obviate the Need for a Firearm Safety
Certificate?
All firearms purchasers in California, with limited exception,
are required to complete and pass a written test prescribed by
the DOJ and administered by an instructor certified by DOJ. The
test must include:
The laws applicable to carrying and handling firearms,
particularly handguns;
The responsibilities of ownership of firearms,
particularly handguns;
Current law as it relates to the sale and transfer of
firearms laws;
Current law as it relates to the permissible use of
lethal force;
What constitutes safe firearm storage;
Risks associated with bringing firearms into the home;
and,
Prevention strategies to address issues associated with
--------------------------
<1> Senate Bill 683 (Block, of 2013) extended to the handgun
safety certificate requirements to all firearms.
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bringing firearms into the home.
(Penal Code § 31640.)
As required by the Penal Code, DOJ includes questions about
California firearm laws. Sample questions taken from the
Firearm Safety Certificate Study Guide include:
To legally give a firearm to your best friend as a
birthday gift, you must complete the transfer of the
firearm through a licensed firearms dealer.
True [or] False
It is illegal to lend a firearm to a minor without the
permission of the minor's parent or legal guardian.
True [or] False
(http://oag.ca.gov/sites/all/files/agweb/pdfs/firearms/forms/hscs
g.pdf)
While members of the military are trained in the use of
firearms, members may wish to consider whether that training
could reasonably be expected to include the same subjects
covered in firearms safety certificate testing.
DOES MILITARY TRAINING IN THE USE OF FIREARMS INCLUDE THE SAME
SUBJECTS AS CALIFORNIA'S FIREARM SAFETY CERTIFICATE TESTING?
4.Prior Legislation
SB 404 (Anderson) of the 2011-2012 Legislative Session,
similarly would have exempted honorably discharged veterans from
having to obtain a HSC in order to purchase a handgun. SB 404
was not heard by the Senate Public Safety Committee.
AB 2152 (Nielsen) of the 2009-2010 Legislative Session,
similarly would have exempted honorably discharged veterans from
having to obtain a HSC in order to purchase a handgun. AB 201
failed passage in the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
AB 2609 (Anderson), of the 2009-2010 Legislative Session,
similarly would have exempted honorably discharged veterans from
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having to obtain a HSC in order to purchase a handgun. AB 201
failed passage in the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
AB 201 (Samuelian), of the 2003-2004 Legislative Session,
similarly would have exempted honorably discharged veterans from
having to obtain a HSC in order to purchase a handgun. AB 201
failed passage in the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
AB 2081 (Briggs), of the 2001-2002 Legislative Session,
similarly would have exempted honorably discharged veterans from
having to obtain a HSC in order to purchase a handgun. AB 2081
failed passage in the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
SB 1615 (Johannessen), of the 2001-2002 Legislative Session,
would have similarly exempted honorably discharged veterans from
having to obtain a HSC in order to purchase a handgun. SB 1615
was not heard by the Senate Public Safety Committee.
5. Argument in Opposition
The California Chapters of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun
Violence state:
Currently, active duty military and retired military
personnel are exempt from obtaining a Firearm Safety
Certificate. Senate Bill 566 would further exempt
honorably discharged veterans from the Firearm Safety
Certificate requirement. An essentially identical bill
relating to the former Handgun Safety Certificate was
introduced in 2011 by Senator Joel Anderson as SB 404.
That bill failed passage in the Senate Public Safety
Committee. Similar bills were also introduced in the
Assembly in 2010 by then Assembly Members Anderson (AB
2609) and Nielsen (AB 2152). Both of these bills also
failed in the Assembly Public Safety Committee.
The presumed rationale for SB 566 is that veterans
receive firearms training in the military and therefore
the material covered by the Firearm Safety Certificate
would be redundant. Military training, however, does
not cover the subject areas listed above and therefore
does not substitute for a Firearm Safety Certificate.
Further, many who serve in the military do not occupy
positions that require the handling and use of firearms.
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To exempt a veteran from the Firearm Safety Certificate
would be the same as exempting a veteran from having to
obtain a driver's license on the grounds that they once
drove motor vehicles while in the military.
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