BILL ANALYSIS
AB 814
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Date of Hearing: April 29, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Kevin De Leon, Chair
AB 814 (Krekorian) - As Amended: April 13, 2009
Policy Committee: Public
SafetyVote: 7-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill creates a process for persons who are prohibited from
possessing a gun as a result of the person's criminal history to
sell that weapon to a gun dealer, to a third party through a
dealer, or to relinquish the gun to a law enforcement agency.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the person to name a designee and grant the designee
power of attorney for the purpose of transferring or disposing
of any gun. The defendant may name a consenting law
enforcement agency as his or her designee.
2)Requires the court to provide a notice and a form developed by
the Department of Justice (DOJ) instructing a convicted person
that he or she is prohibited from owning, purchasing,
receiving, possessing, or having under his or her custody or
control any gun, and that he or she shall relinquish all guns
through a designee.
3)Requires the defendant to declare whether or not he or she
owned or possessed any guns at the time judgment was imposed,
including circumstances describing any guns that may have been
lost or stolen, and to submit information to the arresting law
agency and DOJ, as specified.
4)Specifies the procedures for persons not in custody after
conviction, including that the offender's designee must
dispose of any gun the offender owns or possesses within five
days of conviction.
5)Specifies procedures for persons in custody after conviction,
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including that the offender must dispose of any gun the
offender owns or possesses within 14 days of the conviction.
6)Makes failure by a defendant or a designee, except a designee
that is a law enforcement agency, to timely file the completed
form with the arresting law enforcement agency an infraction,
punishable by a fine not to exceed $500.
7)Specifies a law enforcement agency is not required to retain a
relinquished gun for more than 30 days. After the 30-day
period has expired, the law enforcement agency shall destroy
the weapon, unless it is retained for official purposes.
FISCAL EFFECT
1)Moderate annual costs to DOJ, likely in the range of $600,000,
to process paperwork related to relinquished guns. Assuming
about 360,000 persons are prohibited from possessing a gun,
based on conviction data, assuming 20% of these offenders
submit forms as required, and assuming 15 minutes per review,
the annual cost would be $630,000. (This paperwork is largely
duplicative, as guns sold by a dealer or relinquished to a law
enforcement agency are currently entered into the automated
firearms system (AFS).)
2)Unknown, potentially state-reimbursable annual costs, likely
in the same range as the DOJ cost, to local law enforcement
agencies to review and process forms as specified.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale. The author's intent is to facilitate enforcement of
current law prohibiting gun possession by establishing a
procedures and timelines for relinquishing guns possessed by
offenders in a prohibited class.
According to the Legal Community Against Violence, "The goal
of AB 814 is simple: to help get guns out of the hands of
people who have been convicted of crimes which render them
ineligible to possess firearms. The legislation is needed
because existing state law provides no clear process for
firearm relinquishment under these circumstances, and no
mechanism to ensure that relinquishment ever occurs. As a
result, convicted criminals remain in possession of firearms
statewide. According to the DOJ, as many as 60,000 prohibited
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persons currently possess guns in violation of state law,
creating a direct threat to public safety.
"AB 814 addresses this problem by establishing a clear procedure
and timeline for firearm relinquishment. Under this bill,
when a person is convicted of a crime disqualifying him or her
from possessing firearms, the person is informed of the
disqualification by the court and given a form describing the
specific manner in which firearms may be relinquished."
2)Current law :
a) Makes it a felony, punishable by 16 months, 2, or 3
years in state prison, for any person convicted of a
felony, or who is addicted to the use of any narcotic drug,
to own or possess a gun.
b) Makes it a wobbler, punishable by up to 1 year in county
jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000, or by 16 months, 2, or
3 years in state prison, for any person who has been
convicted of specified misdemeanors, and who, within 10
years of conviction, owns or possesses a gun.
c) Requires DOJ to establish and maintain the Prohibited
Armed Persons File, an online database for
cross-referencing persons who fall within the class of
persons prohibited from owning or possessing a gun.
3)DOJ's Prohibited Armed Persons File was created in 2001 (SB
950, Brulte) to ensure prohibited persons do not possess guns.
To enforce laws prohibiting certain offenders from possessing
guns, DOJ developed the Armed Prohibited Persons System (APPS)
to track handgun and assault weapon owners who pose a threat
to public safety. APPS maintains information about persons who
have been, or will become, prohibited from possessing a
firearm subsequent to the legal acquisition or registration of
a firearm or an assault weapon. It also provides authorized
law enforcement agencies with inquiry capabilities to
determine the prohibition status of a person of interest.
4)Concerns. Much of this measure could be simplified and
clarified, particularly regarding paperwork, reporting, and
basic requirements. The author and DOJ will continue to work
on the language while the bill is on Suspense.
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Analysis Prepared by : Geoff Long / APPR. / (916) 319-2081