BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 869
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 29, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
SB 869
(Hill) - As Amended May 18, 2016
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|Policy | Public Safety |Vote:| 7 - 0 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: YesReimbursable:
No
SUMMARY:
This bill requires, with some exceptions, a person, when leaving
a handgun in an unattended vehicle, to secure the handgun by
locking it in the trunk of the vehicle or locking it in a locked
container and placing the container out of plain view. A
violation is subject to a fine of up to $1,000.
FISCAL EFFECT:
Unknown, probably minor costs to local law enforcement for
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enforcement, but these costs will be offset to some degree by
fines.
COMMENTS:
1)Background/Purpose. Current law requires civilian handgun
owners to store the weapon in a locked box or in the trunk
when leaving it unattended in the car. However, this does not
apply to law enforcement officers and concealed carry license
holders. In recent years, there has been an increase in
incidents of handguns stolen from cars. This includes
handguns stolen from law enforcement vehicles. Tragically,
many stolen guns end up being used in violent crimes.
SB 869 extends the existing vehicle handgun storage
requirement, with some exceptions, to anyone who leaves a
handgun unattended in their car.
2)Related Legislation.
a) SB 894 (Jackson), also on today's agenda, requires a
firearm owner to report the theft or loss of a firearm to
local law enforcement agency within five days of the time
he or she knew, or reasonably should have known, that the
firearm had been stolen or lost.
b) AB 1695 (Bonta) makes it a misdemeanor to falsely report
to law enforcement that a firearm has been lost or stolen.
AB 1695 is pending referral by the Senate Rules Committee.
3)Prior Legislation: AB 231 (Ting), Chapter 730, Statutes of
2013, created the crime of criminal storage in the third
degree, which imposes liability if a person negligently stores
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or leaves a loaded firearm in a place where he or she knows,
or reasonably should know, that a child is likely to access it
without the permission of the child's parent or guardian.
Analysis Prepared by:Pedro Reyes / APPR. / (916)
319-2081