(1) The proposed Safety for All Act of 2016, to be submitted to the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, if enacted would, commencing January 1, 2019, allow any person who is 18 years of age or older to apply to the Department of Justice for an ammunition purchase authorization. The act would allow the sale of ammunition only to persons holding an ammunition purchase authorization or to persons who were approved by the department to receive a firearm from the ammunition vendor if the ammunition is delivered to the person in the same transaction as the firearm. The act would allow the department to charge a fee not to exceed $50 per person for the issuance of an ammunition purchase authorization or the issuance of a renewal authorization. The act would create the
Ammunition Safety and Enforcement Special Fund to receive these fees and would continuously appropriate the funds for the purposes of implementing, operating, and enforcing the ammunition authorization program. The act would authorize its provisions to be amended by a statute that is passed by a vote of 55 percent of the Members of each house of the Legislature and signed by the Governor so long as the amendments are consistent with and further the intent of the act.
This bill would, if the Safety for All Act of 2016 is enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, amend the act to instead allow ammunition to be sold only to a person whose information matches an entry in the Automated Firearms System and who is eligible to possess ammunition, to a person who has a current certificate of eligibility issued by the department, or to a
person who purchases or transfers the ammunition in a single ammunition transaction, as specified. If the act is enacted by the voters, the bill would amend the act to charge ammunition purchasers and transferees a per transaction fee not to exceed $1, as provided, and would deposit the funds into the Ammunition Safety and Enforcement Special Fund created by the act, which fund would be continuously appropriated by the act, thereby making an appropriation. If the act is enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, the other provisions of this bill would not become operative. Because this bill would amend the act, it would require a vote of 55 percent of the Members of each house of the Legislature.
The bill would make Legislative findings and declarations that these amendments further the intent of the act.
(2) Existing law requires the Attorney General to maintain records, including, among other things, fingerprints, licenses to carry concealed firearms, and information from firearms dealers pertaining to firearms, for purposes of assisting in the investigation of crimes and specified civil actions. In regard to certain of those records, existing law authorizes specified peace officers to disseminate the name of the subject of the record, the number of firearms listed in the record, the description of any firearm, and other information reported to the Department of Justice, as specified, if the subject of the record has been arraigned, is being prosecuted, or is serving a sentence for domestic violence or is the subject of specified protective orders. Existing law requires the law enforcement officer to provide a victim of domestic violence to
whom information is disseminated with a “Victims of Domestic Violence” card, and authorizes the victim or other person to whom the information is disseminated to disclose that information as he or she deems necessary to protect himself, herself, or another person from bodily harm by the person who is the subject of the record.
This bill would, if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, require the Attorney General to also maintain information about ammunition transactions and ammunition vendor licenses for those purposes. The bill would similarly authorize specified agencies, officials, and officers to disseminate the name of a person and the fact of any ammunition purchases by that person, as specified, if the subject of the record has been arraigned, is being prosecuted, or is
serving a sentence for domestic violence or is the subject of specified protective orders. The bill would require the law enforcement officer to provide a victim of domestic violence to whom information regarding an ammunition purchase is disseminated with a “Victims of Domestic Violence” card.
By imposing new duties on local law enforcement officers, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(3) Existing law, subject to exceptions, requires that the delivery or transfer of ownership of handgun ammunition occur only in a face-to-face transaction and makes a violation of this requirement a crime.
This bill would, if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, extend those provisions, subject to exceptions, to any ammunition and would reorganize those provisions.
(4) Existing law provides that the term “vendor” for purposes of ammunition sales is a “handgun ammunition vendor” as defined for those and other purposes.
This bill would,
if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, provide that the term “vendor” for purposes of ammunition sales means “ammunition vendor” and, commencing January 1, 2018, means a licensed ammunition vendor. The bill would provide that commencing on January 1, 2018, only a licensed ammunition vendor may sell ammunition. The bill would revise the definition of “ammunition” for those purposes.
(5) Existing law establishes the Prohibited Armed Persons File, the purpose of which is to cross-reference persons prohibited from possessing firearms with records of firearm
transactions to determine if these persons have acquired or attempted to acquire firearms. Under existing law, a person who is prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm is prohibited from owning, possessing, or having under his or her custody or control any ammunition or reloaded ammunition.
This bill would, commencing July 1, 2019, if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, use the Prohibited Armed Persons File to cross-reference persons who attempt to acquire ammunition, as specified, to determine if those persons are prohibited from possessing ammunition.
(6) Existing law makes it a crime for a person, corporation, or firm to provide ammunition, as specified, to an individual that the person, corporation, or firm knows or should know is prohibited from possessing or owning ammunition.
This bill would, if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, apply that prohibition to other business enterprises. The bill would make it a crime for a person, corporation, firm, or other business enterprise to provide, as specified, ammunition to an individual that the person, corporation, firm, or other business entity knows or has cause to believe is not the actual purchaser or transferee of the ammunition or knows or has cause to believe that the ammunition is to be sold or transferred to a person prohibited from possessing or owning
ammunition.
(7) Existing law prohibits an ammunition vendor from allowing a person the vendor knows or should know is a person who is prohibited from possessing firearms, for specified reasons, from handling, selling, or delivering handgun ammunition in the course and scope of his or her employment. Existing law prohibits an ammunition vendor from selling or otherwise transferring ownership of, offering for sale or otherwise offering to transfer ownership of, or displaying for sale or displaying for transfer of ownership of, any handgun ammunition in a manner that allows that ammunition to be accessible to a purchaser or transferee without the assistance of the vendor or
an employee of the vendor.
This bill would, if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, extend those prohibitions to any ammunition. The bill would require that when neither party to the ammunition transaction is an ammunition dealer, the transaction be conducted by an ammunition dealer. The bill would, subject to exceptions, require a resident bringing ammunition into the state to have the ammunition delivered to an ammunition dealer for delivery to the person, as specified. The bill would provide that a violation of these provisions is a crime.
(8) Existing law, subject to exceptions, requires a handgun ammunition vendor to record specified information at the time of delivery of handgun ammunition to a purchaser, as specified.
This bill would, if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, extend those provisions to transactions of any ammunition and would, commencing on July 1, 2019, require the ammunition vendor to submit that information to the Department of Justice, as specified. The bill would require the department to retain the information for 2 years in a database to be known as the Ammunition Purchase Records File and would prescribe the authority of the department and other entities to use the file, as specified. The bill would, commencing on July 1, 2019, and subject to exceptions, require the
purchaser of ammunition to be authorized to purchase ammunition by the department, as specified. The bill would require the department to cross-reference the Prohibited Armed Persons File and the Automated Firearms System for those transaction purposes. The bill would require, commencing on July 1, 2019, and subject to exceptions, that only persons listed in the Automated Firearms System, or who purchase a one-time ammunition transaction license from the department, would be able to purchase ammunition. A violation of these provisions would be a crime.
The bill would, if the proposed Safety for All Act of 2016 is not enacted by the voters at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, authorize the department to accept applications for ammunition vendor licenses, commencing on July 1, 2017. The bill would require an ammunition vendor to be licensed,
commencing on January 1, 2018, in order to sell ammunition. The bill would create an application process for ammunition vendors, as specified. The bill would establish the Ammunition Special Account, into which vendor license fees and ammunition transaction fees would be deposited and made available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the department for purposes of enforcing the ammunition vendor licensing and ammunition purchasing provisions. The bill would require the ammunition vendor to conduct business at the location specified in the license, except in the case of gun shows or events, as specified. The bill would require ammunition sales at a gun show or event to comply with certain requirements pertaining to ammunition transfers and recordkeeping, the violation of which is a crime.
(9) By expanding existing crimes and creating new crimes, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
(10) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.