BILL ANALYSIS Ó SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair 2015 - 2016 Regular Session SB 1407 (de León) - Firearms: identifying information ----------------------------------------------------------------- | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Version: May 11, 2016 |Policy Vote: PUB. S. 5 - 2 | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Urgency: No |Mandate: Yes | | | | |--------------------------------+--------------------------------| | | | |Hearing Date: May 16, 2016 |Consultant: Jolie Onodera | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File. Bill Summary: SB 1407 would require, commencing July 1, 2018, a person to apply to and obtain from the Department of Justice (DOJ) a unique serial number or other mark of identification prior to manufacturing or assembling a firearm, subject to specified exceptions. This bill would require any person who, as of July 1, 2018, owns a firearm that does not bear a serial number, as specified, to apply to the DOJ for a unique serial number or other mark of identification by January 1, 2019. Fiscal Impact: One-time costs of $75,000 (Special Fund*) for the DOJ to promulgate regulations. One-time costs to DOJ in the range of $2 million (Special Fund*) for enhancements to various automation systems. Costs include staffing, overtime, external consultants, and software development. Ongoing costs for storage, updates and maintenance are estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands SB 1407 (de León) PageA of? of dollars annually. Start-up costs to DOJ of $365,000 (Special Fund*) to process and verify an estimated 15,000 applications to register 30,000 firearms. Annual costs in the range of $100,000 (Special Fund*) for ongoing administration of the program to process an estimated 1,000 applications to register 2,000 firearms, verify required information, assign serial numbers, and input data. The $25 fee per application would cover start-up costs but would not sustain the ongoing costs of the program (1,000 applications would only generate $25,000 in fee revenue). Non-reimbursable local enforcement costs (Local Funds) offset to a degree by fine revenue to the extent violations of the new registration requirements occur. Potential court-related costs (General Fund**) for new misdemeanor filings. While the impact of this bill independently on local jails is likely to be minor, the cumulative effect of expanded misdemeanors could create General Fund cost pressure on capital outlay, staffing, programming, the courts, and other resources in the context of criminal justice realignment. *Dealers Record of Sale (DROS) Account - Staff notes the DROS Account is structurally imbalanced, with an estimated year-end fund balance of less than $1 million in FY 2016-17. As a result, an appropriation from another fund source, potentially the General Fund, would be required to support the activities required by this bill. **Trial Court Trust Fund Background: From the Senate Committee on Public Safety analysis of this bill, "According to a July 15, 2013, briefing prepared by the Minority Staff of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, United States House of Representatives: On June 7, 2013, John Zawahri, 23, killed five people and injured several more during a shooting rampage that lasted approximately 13 minutes in Santa Monica, California. He first shot and killed his father, Samir Zawahri, and brother, Christopher, at their home. He then pulled over and carjacked Laurie Sisk, forcing her to drive at gunpoint to Santa Monica SB 1407 (de León) PageB of? College. Zawahri shot at numerous cars, pedestrians, and a bus en route, killing the college's groundskeeper, Carlos Franco, and his daughter, Marcela. Upon arriving at the campus, he then fatally shot another woman, Margarita Gomez. He then entered the school library, where he attempted to kill several library patrons who were hiding in a safe room. Police, who had been alerted to the shooting and to Zawahri's location by numerous 911 calls, exchanged gunfire in the library with the shooter and pronounced him dead at the scene. According to authorities, Zawahri fired approximately 100 rounds in total. Zawahri had a history of mental illness. In 2006, a teacher at his high school discovered Zawahri researching assault weapons online. School officials contacted the police and he was subsequently admitted to the psychiatric ward at the University of California, Los Angeles Medical Center. Zawahri attempted to buy a weapon in 2011, but a background check conducted by the California Department of Justice found him ineligible and denied the purchase. The reasons for this denial have not been publicly released. Zawahri used a modified AR-15 rifle in the shooting and also carried a .44-caliber handgun. He possessed more than 1,300 rounds of ammunition. The AR-15 rifle is the same type of gun used in the mass shootings that occurred in Aurora, Colorado, and Newtown, Connecticut. The AR-15 firearm held 30 rounds. California state law bans the sale of AR-15 rifles with a magazine capacity greater than ten rounds. Authorities believe that Zawahri assembled his AR-15 rifle using parts he bought in pieces from a number of different sources, including an 80% completed lower receiver. Police found a drill press at Zawahri's home, a tool that can make holes in the lower receiver to complete the weapon. There are no provisions in existing laws that prevent a person from buying an 80% lower receiver<1> and then making it into a fully functional firearm. Because 80% lower receivers are not considered firearms, a person purchasing them does not have to go through a federal firearms dealer, and does not have to --------------------------- <1> According to Tactical Machining, "An 80% Receiver is a partially completed piece of material that requires special tooling and skills to be completed and considered a firearm." (http://www.tacticalmachining.com/80-lower-receiver.html.) SB 1407 (de León) PageC of? undergo a background check. Proposed Law: This bill would regulate firearms that are manufactured or assembled by an individual, by requiring a person, commencing July 1, 2018, to do the following: Apply for and obtain a unique serial number or other identifying mark from the DOJ prior to manufacturing or assembling a firearm. Engrave or permanently affix the unique serial number or mark to the firearm, as specified. Notify the DOJ once the serial number or mark is affixed to the firearm. For any person who, as of July 1, 2018, owns a firearm that does not already bear a serial number, as specified, this bill requires the person to apply to the DOJ for a unique serial number or other mark of identification by January 1, 2019. A violation of the above requirements would be punishable by imprisonment in county jail for up to one year (for handguns) or six months (for other firearms), a fine of up to $1,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment. This bill prohibits the sale or transfer of ownership of a firearm manufactured or assembled pursuant the bill's provisions. Additionally, this bill prohibits a person, corporation, or firm from knowingly allowing, aiding, facilitating, or abetting the manufacture or assembly of a firearm by any of a class of specified persons. This bill provides for the following exemptions from the requirement to obtain a serial number for a self-assembled firearm: A firearm that has a serial number or mark of identification assigned to it, as specified. A firearm that is not a handgun manufactured or assembled prior to December 16, 1968. A firearm which was entered into the centralized registry prior to July 1, 2018, as specified. A firearm that has a serial number assigned to it SB 1407 (de León) PageD of? pursuant to federal law, as specified. A firearm that is a curio or relic, or an antique firearm, as those terms are defined. An application to the DOJ for a unique serial number shall only be granted if the applicant: Completes a personal firearms eligibility check demonstrating that the applicant is not prohibited by state or federal law from possessing, receiving, owning, or purchasing a firearm. Presents proof of age and identity, as specified. Provides a description of the firearm intended to be manufactured or assembled, in a manner prescribed by the DOJ. Has a valid firearm safety certificate or handgun safety certificate. Additionally, this bill requires the DOJ to: Inform applicants who are denied the issuance of a serial number the reasons for the denial in writing. Grant or deny all applications within 15 calendar days of the receipt of the application. Charge an application fee at DOJ's request for each serial number or mark it issues in an amount sufficient to reimburse DOJ for the actual costs associated with assigning a distinguishing number or mark to a firearm and for conducting a personal firearms eligibility check, as specified. Deposit all funds received in the DROS Account, to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature. Adopt regulations to administer the program. Maintain and make available upon request the following information: o The number of serial numbers issued. SB 1407 (de León) PageE of? o The number of arrests for violations of the bill's provisions. Related Legislation: AB 857 (Cooper) 2016 is identical to this measure. AB 857 is scheduled to be heard today by this Committee. AB 1673 (Gipson) 2016 would expand the definition of "firearm" to include the frame or receiver of the weapon or a frame or receiver "blank," "casting," or "machined body" that is designed and clearly identifiable as a component of a functional weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel, a projectile by the force of an explosion or other form of combustion. AB 1673 has been referred to the Suspense File of the Assembly Committee on Appropriations. Prior Legislation: SB 808 (de León) was substantially similar to this measure. SB 808 was vetoed by the Governor with the following message: I am returning Senate Bill 808 without my signature. SB 808 would require individuals who build guns at home to first obtain a serial number and register the weapon with the Department of Justice. I appreciate the author's concerns about gun violence, but I can't see how adding a serial number to a homemade gun would significantly advance public safety. AB 809 (Feuer) Chapter 745/2011, commencing January 1, 2014, conforms requirements for reporting and record retention involving the transfer of long guns with those of handguns; repeals the prohibition on peace officers and the DOJ from retaining or compiling records of long gun transfers; expands the reporting requirements to apply to the importation of long guns; and expands requirements for firearms dealers to keep a register or record of information pertaining to firearms transactions to include information pertaining to transactions involving all firearms. AB 1810 (Feuer) 2010 would have provided that firearms reporting and records retention requirements that at the time only applied to handguns also apply to long guns. This bill failed passage on the Senate Floor. SB 1407 (de León) PageF of? AB 161 (Steinberg) Chapter 754/2003 revised the specific limitations on the use of funds derived from the purchase of firearms by the DOJ and provided that DROS Special Account funds may be used by the DOJ for costs associated with firearms-related regulatory and enforcement activities. Staff Comments: This bill requires the DOJ to administer a program to issue serial numbers to individuals for self-assembled firearms through an application process that requires a completed background check, proof of age and identity, a description of the firearm, and proof of a valid firearm or handgun safety certificate. It is estimated it would be an 18-month project for DOJ to make the necessary enhancements to various automation systems, including the California Reporting Information System (CRIS), Consolidated Firearm Information System (CFIS), DROS application, Automated Firearm System (AFS), and the California Information Firearms Gateway. Estimated one-time costs for these enhancements are $2.1 million (DROS) over 18 months, which includes staffing, overtime, external consultants, and software development. Limited-term staff resources to process and verify an estimated 15,000 applications to register 30,000 firearms would be required at DOJ to handle the population of applications for individuals who owned a non-serialized firearm as of July 1, 2018. Estimated one-time costs of $365,000 include staff to process the applications, verify the required information, assign serial numbers, and input data. Annual costs are estimated in the range of $100,000 for the ongoing administration of the program to process an estimated 1,000 applications to register 2,000 firearms annually. While the $25 DROS fee per application would cover initial costs (15,000 x $25 = $375,000), future applications of 1,000 per year would not sustain the ongoing costs of the program (1,000 x $25 = $25,000). A violation of the bill's registration requirements would be punishable by imprisonment in county jail for up to one year (for handguns) or six months (for other firearms), a fine of up to $1,000, or by both the fine and imprisonment, resulting in a potential increase in non-reimbursable local enforcement costs offset to a degree by fine revenue to the extent violations of the new registration requirements occur and are enforced. SB 1407 (de León) PageG of? The creation of new or expanded misdemeanors has historically been analyzed by this Committee to result in non-reimbursable state mandated costs for local law enforcement and incarceration. Staff notes, however, that the creation and expansion of misdemeanors taken cumulatively could increase the statewide adult jail population to a degree that could potentially impact the flexibility of counties to manage their jail populations recently exacerbated under 2011 Public Safety Realignment. While the provisions of this bill are likely to be minor, the cumulative effect of all new misdemeanors could create unknown General Fund cost pressure on capital outlay, staffing, programming, the courts, and other resources. -- END --