BILL NUMBER: AB 2459 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member McCarty
FEBRUARY 19, 2016
An act to amend Sections 26800 and 26805 of, and to add Sections
26920 and 26925 to, the Penal Code, relating to firearms.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2459, as introduced, McCarty. Firearms dealers: conduct of
business.
Under existing law, a firearms dealer or licensee means a person
who has a valid federal firearms license, has a regulatory or
business license, has a valid seller's permit issued by the State
Board of Equalization, has a certificate of eligibility issued by the
Department of Justice, has a license granted by a duly constituted
licensing authority of any city, county, or city and county, and is
among those recorded in the centralized list of licensed firearms
dealers kept by the Department of Justice. Existing law regulates
licensed firearms dealers and provides that a license is subject to
forfeiture for a breach of specified prohibitions in existing law.
This bill would authorize the Department of Justice to impose a
civil fine not exceeding $500 for a breach of those prohibitions, and
a civil fine not exceeding $2,000 for a breach of those prohibitions
when the licensee has received written notification from the
department regarding the breach and fails to take corrective action,
as specified, or the department determines the licensee committed the
breach knowingly or with gross negligence.
Existing law, subject to exceptions pertaining to specified gun
shows or events, requires a firearms dealer to conduct business only
in the buildings designated in the dealer's license.
This bill would, in addition, commencing January 1, 2018, prohibit
a firearms dealer license from designating a building that is a
residence, as defined, as a building where the licensee's business
may be conducted. The bill would also provide that these provisions
would not preclude or preempt a local ordinance that places
additional or more stringent requirements on firearms dealers
regarding where the business of the licensee may be conducted.
The bill would require a licensee to ensure that its business
premises are monitored by a video surveillance system that, among
other requirements, visually records and archives footage of (1)
every sale or transfer of a firearm or ammunition, in a manner that
makes the facial features of the purchaser or transferee clearly
visible in the recorded footage; (2) all places where firearms or
ammunition are stored, displayed, carried, handled, sold, or
transferred; (3) the immediate exterior surroundings of the licensee'
s business premises; and (4) all parking areas owned or leased by the
licensee.
The bill would, commencing January 1, 2018, require a licensee to
obtain a policy of commercial insurance that insures the licensee
against liability for damage to property and for injury to or death
of any person as a result of the theft, sale, lease or transfer or
offering for sale, lease or transfer of a firearm or ammunition, or
any other operations of the business and business premises, in the
amount of $1,000,000 per incident, as specified. The bill would also
provide that these provisions would not preclude or preempt a local
ordinance that places additional or more stringent requirements on
firearms dealers regarding insurance pertaining to the licensee's
business.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 26800 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
26800. (a) A license under this chapter is
subject to forfeiture for a breach of any of the prohibitions and
requirements of this article, except those stated in the following
provisions:
(a)
(1) Subdivision (c) of Section 26890.
(b)
(2) Subdivision (d) of Section 26890.
(c)
(3) Subdivision (b) of Section 26900.
(b) The department may assess a civil fine against a licensee, not
to exceed five hundred dollars ($500), for any breach of a
prohibition or requirement of this article that subjects the license
to forfeiture under subdivision (a). The department may assess a
civil fine not to exceed two thousand dollars ($2,000), for any
breach of a prohibition or requirement of this article that subjects
the license to forfeiture under subdivision (a), for either of the
following:
(1) The licensee has received written notification from the
department regarding the breach and subsequently failed to take
corrective action in a timely manner.
(2) The licensee is otherwise determined by the department to have
knowingly or with gross negligence breached the prohibition or
requirement.
SEC. 2. Section 26805 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
26805. (a) (1) Except as provided in
subdivisions (b) and (c), the business of a licensee shall be
conducted only in the buildings designated in the license.
(2) Commencing January 1, 2018, a license shall not designate any
building that is a residence as a building where the licensee's
business may be conducted. For purposes of this section, "residence"
means any structure intended or used for human habitation, including,
but not limited to, dwellings, condominiums, apartments, rooms,
motels, hotels, time-shares, and recreational or other vehicles in
which human habitation occurs.
(b) (1) A person licensed pursuant to Sections 26700 and 26705 may
take possession of firearms and commence preparation of registers
for the sale, delivery, or transfer of firearms at any gun show or
event, as defined in Section 478.100 of Title 27 of the Code of
Federal Regulations, or its successor, if the gun show or event is
not conducted from any motorized or towed vehicle. A person
conducting business pursuant to this subdivision shall be entitled to
conduct business as authorized herein at any gun show or event in
the state, without regard to the jurisdiction within this state that
issued the license pursuant to Sections 26700 and 26705, provided the
person complies with all applicable laws, including, but not limited
to, the waiting period specified in subdivision (a) of Section
26815, and all applicable local laws, regulations, and fees, if any.
(2) A person conducting business pursuant to this subdivision
shall publicly display the person's license issued pursuant to
Sections 26700 and 26705, or a facsimile thereof, at any gun show or
event, as specified in this subdivision.
(c) (1) A person licensed pursuant to Sections 26700 and 26705 may
engage in the sale and transfer of firearms other than handguns, at
events specified in Sections 26955, 27655, 27900, and 27905, subject
to the prohibitions and restrictions contained in those sections.
(2) A person licensed pursuant to Sections 26700 and 26705 may
also accept delivery of firearms other than handguns, outside the
building designated in the license, provided the firearm is being
donated for the purpose of sale or transfer at an auction or similar
event specified in Section 27900.
(d) The firearm may be delivered to the purchaser, transferee, or
person being loaned the firearm at one of the following places:
(1) The building designated in the license.
(2) The places specified in subdivision (b) or (c).
(3) The place of residence of, the fixed place of business of, or
on private property owned or lawfully possessed by, the purchaser,
transferee, or person being loaned the firearm.
(e) This section does not preclude or preempt a local ordinance
that places additional or more stringent requirements on firearms
dealers regarding where the business of the licensee may be
conducted.
SEC. 3. Section 26920 is added to the Penal Code, to read:
26920. (a) A licensee shall ensure that its business premises are
monitored by a video surveillance system that meets the requirements
of this section.
(b) The video surveillance system shall visually record and
archive footage of all of the following:
(1) Every sale or transfer of a firearm or ammunition, in a manner
that makes the facial features of the purchaser or transferee
clearly visible in the recorded footage.
(2) All places where firearms or ammunition are stored, displayed,
carried, handled, sold, or transferred, including, but not limited
to, counters, safes, vaults, cabinets, shelves, cases, and entryways.
(3) The immediate exterior surroundings of the licensee's
business.
(4) All parking areas owned or leased by the licensee.
(c) The video surveillance system shall operate and record
continuously, without interruption, whenever the licensee is open for
business. Whenever the licensee is not open for business, the system
shall be triggered by a motion detector and begin recording
immediately upon detection of any motion within the monitored area.
(d) When recording, the video surveillance system shall store
color images of the monitored area at a frequency sufficient to
produce retrievable and identifiable images and video recordings that
are capable of delineating on playback the activity and physical
features of persons or areas where firearms and ammunition are
stored, displayed, carried, handled, sold, or transferred.
(e) The stored images shall be maintained on the business premises
of the licensee for a period of not less than five years from the
date of recordation. If, within five years of the transfer, a firearm
or ammunition acquired in the transaction is the subject of a law
enforcement investigation or firearms disposition request, the
footage of the transfer shall be preserved for an additional five
years.
(f) The video surveillance system shall be maintained in proper
working order at all times. If the system becomes inoperable, it
shall be repaired or replaced within 15 calendar days. The licensee
shall inspect the system at least weekly to ensure that it is
operational and images are being recorded and retained as required.
(g) The licensee shall post a sign in a conspicuous place at each
entrance to the premises that states in block letters not less than
one inch in height:
"THESE PREMISES ARE UNDER VIDEO SURVEILLANCE. YOUR IMAGE MAY BE
RECORDED."
(h) A licensee shall, on an annual basis, provide certification to
the Department of Justice, in a manner prescribed by the department,
that its video surveillance system is in proper working order.
SEC. 4. Section 26925 is added to the Penal Code, to read:
26925. (a) Commencing January 1, 2018, a licensee shall obtain a
policy of commercial insurance that insures the licensee against
liability for damage to property and for injury to or death of any
person as a result of the theft, sale, lease or transfer or offering
for sale, lease or transfer of a firearm or ammunition, or any other
operations of the business and business premises. The limits of
liability shall not be less than one million dollars ($1,000,000) for
each incident of damage to property or incident of injury or death
to a person.
(b) A licensee shall, on an annual basis, provide certification to
the Department of Justice that it has obtained a policy of
commercial insurance that meets the requirements of this section.
(c) The policy of commercial insurance shall contain an
endorsement providing that the policy shall not be canceled until
written notice has been given to the Department of Justice at least
30 days prior to the time the cancellation becomes effective.
(d) This section does not preclude or preempt a local ordinance
that places additional or more stringent requirements on firearms
dealers regarding insurance requirements relating to the conduct of
the business of the licensee.