BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 1332 Page A Date of Hearing: June 28, 2016 Counsel: Gabriel Caswell ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr., Chair SB 1332 (Mendoza) - As Amended May 31, 2016 SUMMARY: Provides for the joint registration of firearms between spouses and domestic partners, as specified, and modifies existing firearm loan provisions. Specifically, this bill: 1)Requires, commencing January 1, 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) to permanently keep and properly file and maintain the name of the person and his or her spouse or domestic partner, if the firearm is registered to both individuals, as specified. SB 1332 Page B 2)Requires, commencing January 1, 2019, DOJ to modify its registration forms, if it has not already done so, so that both spouses or both domestic partners may register as the owners of the firearm, as specified. 3)Provides that requirements that a loan of a firearm must go through a licensed firearms dealer does not apply to the loan of a firearm provided all of the following are met (loans within a single residence): a) If the firearm being loaned is registered to the person making the loan; b) The loan occurs within the individual receiving the firearm and the lender's place of residence or private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity; c) The firearm at all times stays within the individual receiving the firearm and the lender's place of residence or private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity; d) The individual receiving the firearm is not prohibited by state or federal law from possessing, receiving, owning, or purchasing a firearm; e) The individual receiving the firearm is 18 years of age or older; f) The individual receiving the firearm has a valid firearm safety certificate, except that if the firearm being loaned is a handgun, the individual may instead have an unexpired handgun safety certificate; and SB 1332 Page C g) The person being loaned the firearm resides within the same residence as the lender. 4)Provides that requirements that a loan of a firearm must go through a licensed firearms dealer does not apply to the loan of a firearm provided all of the following are met (loans outside a single place of residence for purposes of storage): a) If the firearm being loaned is registered to the person making the loan; b) The firearm being loaned is stored in the receiver's place of residence or in an enclosed structure on the receiver's private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity; c) The firearm at all times stays within the receiver's place of residence or in an enclosed structure on the receiver's private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity; d) The individual receiving the firearm is not prohibited by state or federal law from possessing, receiving, owning, or purchasing a firearm; e) The individual receiving the firearm is 18 years of age or older; f) The individual receiving the firearm has a valid firearm safety certificate, except that if the firearm being loaned is a handgun, the individual may instead have an unexpired handgun safety certificate; g) One of the following applies: SB 1332 Page D i) The firearm is maintained within a locked container; ii) The firearm is disabled by a firearm safety device; iii) The firearm is maintained within a locked gun safe; or iv) The firearm is locked with a locking device, as defined in Section 16860, which has rendered the firearm inoperable. h) The loan does not exceed 30 days in duration; i) The loan is made without consideration; j) There is writing in a format prescribed by the DOJ that explains the obligations imposed by this section that is signed by both the party loaning the firearm for storage and the person receiving the firearm; and aa) Both parties to the loan have signed copies of the writing, as specified. 5)Defines "residence" for purposes of this legislation and "resides within the same residence," as specified. EXISTING LAW: 1)States, in order to assist in the investigation of crime, the prosecution of civil actions by city attorneys, the arrest and prosecution of criminals, and the recovery of lost, stolen, or SB 1332 Page E found property, the Attorney General shall keep and properly file a complete record of all copies of fingerprints, copies of licenses to carry firearms issued as provided, information reported to the Department of Justice (DOJ) as specified, dealers' records of sales of firearms, specified forms and reports, that are not dealers' records of sales of firearms, other specified information, and reports of stolen, lost, found, pledged, or pawned property in any city or county of this state, and shall, upon proper application therefor, furnish this information to the officers authorized to receive state summary criminal history information. (Pen. Code, § 11106, subd. (a).) 2)Requires the Attorney General to permanently keep and properly file and maintain all information reported to DOJ pursuant to specified provisions of law as to firearms and maintain a registry thereof. (Pen. Code, § 11106, subd. (b).) 3)Provides that any officer referred to in provisions of law related to who may receive state summary criminal history information may disseminate the name of the subject of the record, the number of the firearms listed in the record, and the description of any firearm, including the make, model, and caliber, from the record relating to any firearm's sale, transfer, registration, or license record, or any information reported to DOJ if certain conditions are met. (Pen. Code, § 11106, subd. (c)(1).) 4)Requires licensed firearms dealers, before they may deliver a firearm to a purchaser, to perform a background check on the purchaser through the federal National Instant Criminal Background Check System ("NICS"). (18 U.S.C §§ 921, et seq.) SB 1332 Page F 5)Requires that, except as specified, all sales, loans, and transfers of firearms to be processed through or by a state-licensed firearms dealer or a local law enforcement agency. (Pen. Code, § 27545.) 6)Provides that there is a 10-day waiting period when purchasing a firearm through a firearms dealer. During which time, a background check is conducted and, if the firearm is a handgun, a handgun safety certificate is required prior to delivery of the firearm. (Pen. Code, §§ 26815, 26840, subd. (b) & 27540.) 7)Creates numerous exceptions to a variety of different and specified firearms transfer requirements, including penal code section 27545, for loans of firearms under a variety of different circumstances. The general categories of these exceptions are: a) For target shooting at target facility. (Pen. Code, § 26545.) b) To entertainment production. (Pen. Code, § 26580.) c) Several exceptions relating to law enforcement officers and government agencies (Pen. Code, §§ 2660, et seq.) d) For infrequent loan of non-handgun; curio or relic (Pen. Code, § 27966) [commencing January 1, 2014] e) To a consultant-evaluator. (Pen. Code, § 27005.) SB 1332 Page G f) To minors. (Pen. Code, § 27505.) g) Infrequent loans to persons known to each other. (Pen. Code, § 27880.) h) Where the firearm stays within the presence of the owner. (Pen. Code, § 27885.) i) To a licensed hunter. (Pen. Code, § 27950.) FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown. COMMENTS: 1)Author's Statement: According to the author, "According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), about 1.4 million firearms were stolen during household burglaries and other property crimes between 2005 and 2010. A 2010 audit conducted by the San Jose Police Department reported that around 300 of its firearms could not be accounted for, some of which may have been stolen from officers' homes. Graham Barlowe, Agent of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Sacramento Office, stated that "In this day and age of technology, most of the electronics don't really have any value at all? the firearms do. Even an old firearm is still valuable" (NBC Bay Area, 2015). "As an overview, per the provisions of the Federal Gun Control Act of 1968 and implementing regulations, a federal firearms licensee may not allow a firearm to leave that licensee's licensed premises in the possession of a person who is not licensed as a federal firearms licensee unless a federal form 4473 is completed. And since 1998, save in two cases a NICS background check must be done as well before the gun leaves the premises. Those two exceptions are for persons with Brady permits (18 USC 922(t)(3)) and authorized law enforcement SB 1332 Page H personnel (18 USC 925(a)(1)). The FBI in implementing NICS has very stringent requirements for granting a Brady Permit which is why most states do not have licenses/permits that qualify. [<1>] In California only a FEP qualifies as a Brady-NICS permit though with the APPS Program I would argue our license to carry should be deemed a Brady-NICS Permit. "In addition to strengthening gun laws, it is also critical that laws regarding firearms are consistent and uniform. One of the underlying issues in gun loans is intra-spouse 'loans' where the gun in reality is probably viewed as jointly owned. California gun laws do not currently expressly permit spousal joint registration and ownership of a firearm save for .50 BMG rifles and assault weapons. "Joint registration has been occurring by default for several reasons. First, as a result of some local jurisdictions issuing a license to carry to both spouses for the same handgun. In the case of carry licenses, the local jurisdiction then transmits this information to the California Department of Justice (DOJ). "This bill seeks to create greater safeguards to prevent guns from falling into the wrong hands and to bring consistency to California's firearms laws." 2)Joint Registration by Spouses and Domestic Partners: California gun laws do not explicitly permit joint --------------------------- <1> To be considered a qualifying permit, the permit must be issued pursuant to a background check with continual review of the person's eligibility being run through NICS. SB 1332 Page I registration and ownership of a firearm. Joint registration has been occurring by default as a result of some local jurisdictions issuing a license to carry to both spouses for the same handgun. The local jurisdiction then transmits this information to the California Department of Justice (DOJ). It also occurs by default via the new resident process and the operation of law process. Joint spousal firearm registration exists in Hawaii, Maryland, and New York. Joint spousal registration will impact the operation of law if one spouse dies, in which case, the firearm would remain in lawful possession of the surviving spouse. 3)Loaning of Firearms: This bill requires the loaning of firearms in two distinct scenarios. Generally, under existing law, the loan of a firearm must be processed through a state-licensed firearms dealer. This bill creates exemptions to this requirement under two scenarios. The first scenario is between two persons who reside in the same residence. The second scenario is the loaning of a firearm to another person for the purpose of safely storing the firearm. a) Loan to a Person in the Same Residence: Under this bill, loaning a firearm to a person who resides in the same location will be exempted from having to go through a licensed firearms dealer if all of the following conditions are met: i) The firearm being loaned is registered to the person making the loan; ii) The loan occurs within the individual receiving the firearm and the lender's place of residence or private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity; iii) The firearm at all times stays within the individual SB 1332 Page J receiving the firearm and the lender's place of residence or private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity; iv) The individual receiving the firearm is not prohibited by state or federal law from possessing, receiving, owning, or purchasing a firearm; v) The individual receiving the firearm is 18 years of age or older; vi) The individual receiving the firearm has a valid firearm safety certificate, except that if the firearm being loaned is a handgun, the individual may instead have an unexpired handgun safety certificate; and vii) The person being loaned the firearm resides within the same residence as the lender. b) Loan to a Person for Safe Storage: Under this bill, loaning a firearm to another person for the purpose of safe storage will be exempted from having to go through a licensed firearms dealer if all of the following conditions are met: i) If the firearm being loaned is registered to the person making the loan. ii) The firearm being loaned is stored in the receiver's place of residence or in an enclosed structure on the receiver's private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity. iii) The firearm at all times stays within the receiver's place of residence or in an enclosed structure on the receiver's private property, which is not zoned for commercial, retail, or industrial activity. SB 1332 Page K iv) The individual receiving the firearm is not prohibited by state or federal law from possessing, receiving, owning, or purchasing a firearm. v) The individual receiving the firearm is 18 years of age or older. vi) The individual receiving the firearm has a valid firearm safety certificate, except that if the firearm being loaned is a handgun, the individual may instead have an unexpired handgun safety certificate. vii) One of the following applies: (1) The firearm is maintained within a locked container. (2) The firearm is disabled by a firearm safety device. (3) The firearm is maintained within a locked gun safe. (4) The firearm is locked with a locking device, as defined in Section 16860, which has rendered the firearm inoperable. viii) The loan does not exceed 30 days in duration. ix) The loan is made without consideration. x) There is writing in a format prescribed by the DOJ that explains the obligations imposed by this section that is signed by both the party loaning the firearm for storage and the person receiving the firearm. SB 1332 Page L i) Both parties to the loan have signed copies of the writing, as specified. 4)Stolen Firearms: According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), about 1.4 million firearms were stolen during household burglaries and other property crimes between 2005 and 2010. A 2010 audit conducted by the San Jose Police Department reported that around 300 of its firearms could not be accounted for, some of which may have been stolen from officer's homes. Graham Barlowe, Agent of the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Sacramento Office, stated that "In this day and age of technology, most of the electronics don't really have any value at all? the firearms do. Even an old firearm is still valuable" (NBC Bay Area, 2015). Although reports vary, stolen guns may account for roughly 15% of guns used in crimes, thus it is essential that a safekeeping program is available when a gun owner leaves their property. 5)Argument in Support: According to Peace Officers Research Association of California, "This bill would require the Department of Justice to modify its registration form so that both spouses or both domestic partners may register as the owners of the firearm and would require the department to maintain both names on the firearm's registry. The bill would make related findings and declarations?PORAC supports this bill." 6)Argument in Opposition: According to Safari Club International, "Although joint registration of firearms for spouses or domestic partners is desirable, it does not outweigh our concerns with the provision of the bill that would require all firearms that are loaned pursuant to the proposed loan provisions to be registered with the Department of Justice in order to qualify for an exemption to the SB 1332 Page M existing law that requires loans be processed through a licensed firearms dealer." 7)Related Legislation: AB 1551 (Santiago), specifies that the infrequent loan of a firearm may only be made to family members. AB 1551 was passed by this committee on June 21, 2016 and is currently awaiting a vote on the Assembly Floor. REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION: Support Courage Campaign Peace Officers Research Association of California Opposition California Sportsman's Lobby Gun Owners of California Outdoor Sportsmen's Coalition of California SB 1332 Page N Safari Club International Analysis Prepared by:Gabriel Caswell / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744