BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2358
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Date of Hearing: April 13, 2010
Chief Counsel: Gregory Pagan
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Tom Ammiano, Chair
AB 2358 (De Leon) - As Introduced: February 19, 2010
SUMMARY : Provides that, commencing February 1, 2011, an
ammunition vendor shall not provide ammunition purchaser
information to any third party without the written consent of
the purchaser, and requires that any records no longer required
to be maintained be destroyed in a manner that protects the
purchaser who is the subject of the record.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Provides, commencing February1, 2011, a vendor of handgun
ammunition shall not sell or transfer handgun ammunition
without at the time of purchase legibly recording the
following information on a form prescribed by the Department
of Justice (DOJ):
a) The date of the transaction;
b) The transferee's driver's license or other
identification number and the state in which it was issued;
c) The brand, type, and amount of ammunition transferred;
d) The purchaser or transferee's signature;
e) The name of the salesperson who processed the sale or
transaction;
f) The right thumbprint of the purchaser or transferee on
the prescribed form;
g) The purchaser's or transferee's full residential address
and telephone number; and,
h) The purchaser's or transferee's date of birth. [Penal
Code Section 12061(a)(3).]
AB 2358
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2)Requires, commencing February 1, 2011, the records of the sale
or transfer of handgun ammunition shall be maintained on the
premises of the vendor for at least five years from the date
of the recorded transfer. [Penal Code Section 12061(a)(4).]
3)Requires, commencing February 1, 2011, the handgun ammunition
vendor's records of sale shall be subject to inspection by
specified peace officers engaged in an investigation where the
records may be relevant, is seeking information about
prohibited persons, or is engaged in ensuring compliance with
laws relating to firearms or ammunition. [Penal Code Section
12061(a)(5).]
4)Provides, commencing February 1, 2011, the sale or transfer of
handgun ammunition may only occur in a face-to-face
transaction with the seller or transferor being provided with
bona fide evidence of identity from the purchaser. (Penal
Code Section 12318.)
5)Provides that "it shall be unlawful for any licensed importer,
licensed manufacturer, licensed dealer, or licensed collector
to sell or deliver - any firearm or ammunition to any
individual who the licensee knows or has reasonable cause to
believe is less than 18 years of age and, if the firearm or
ammunition is other than a shotgun or rifle, or ammunition for
a shotgun or rifle, to any individual who the licensee knows
or has reasonable cause to believe is less than 21 years of
age . . . . " [18 United States Code Service 922(b)(1).]
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement . According to the author, "Last year, the
Governor signed AB 962 into law prohibiting a vendor from
selling or furnishing ammunition to any person known to be
prohibited from possessing or acquiring ammunition. The law
also requires vendors to record handgun ammunition sales, and
makes the records available to law enforcement for the
purposes of crosschecking purchasers with prohibited person's
databases to help crack down on criminals purchasing
ammunition. The recording requirement would commence February
1, 2011.
AB 2358
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"Purchase logs will be a useful enforcement and investigative
tool for law enforcement to use as proven by a City of
Sacramento ordinance. In reviewing their ammunition-purchaser
records for 2008, the Sacramento Police Department found that
over 150 prohibited persons purchases ammunition within the
year in their city alone. Given the importance of these
records, customer information should only be used for
investigatory and enforcement purposes. These records must be
protected from any third party or non-authorized person unless
there is written consent of the purchaser.
"In order to access these records, local law enforcement must
know who is selling ammunition. Without any written notice by
an ammunition vendor, local law enforcement would not know
where to locate purchase records. Currently, the statute
enacted by AB 962 does not clarify that ammunition vendors
must provide local law enforcement written notice of their
intent to conduct business."
2)Argument in Support . According to the California Chapters of
the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence , "AB 2358 seeks to
clarify the original intent of AB 962 by specifying that the
handgun ammunition sales record cannot be provided to a
non-authorized person or third party without the written
consent of the purchaser. These records can only be used for
investigative purposes by law enforcement. In addition, the
bill specifies that ammunition records that are no longer
required to be maintained shall be destroyed in a manner that
protects the privacy of the purchaser. These provisions
address the concerns about identity theft and privacy that
were brought up by the opponents of AB 962."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Chapters of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun
Violence
Legal Community Against Violence
Opposition
California Rifle and Pistol Association
National Rifle Association
AB 2358
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Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744