CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 965

Introduced by Senator Min

January 24, 2024

An act to add Section 26730 to the Penal Code, relating to firearms.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 965, as introduced, Min. Firearms.
Existing law, commencing January 1, 2024, requires the Department of Justice to conduct inspections of specified licensed firearms dealers at least once every 3 years, to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulations. Previous law authorized the department to conduct such inspections. Existing law requires the department to maintain specified records regarding these inspections and to make those records available upon request. Existing law also authorizes the department to inspect licensed ammunition vendors.
Existing law requires the department to maintain a list of all handguns that have been tested and certified not to be unsafe handguns, as defined. Existing law prohibits the sale of a handgun not on the roster, except as specifically exempted.
This bill would require the department, by no later than August 15, 2025, and annually thereafter, to submit a report to the Legislature including, as specified, information about department staffing for conducting inspections of firearms dealers and ammunition vendors, detailed information about each such inspection conducted, including violations and the resolution of those violations, and specified information about the roster of handguns, including information about handguns added to, removed from, or denied addition to, the roster.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 Section 26730 is added to the Penal Code, to read:

26730.
 (a) The Department of Justice shall, by no later than August 15, 2025, prepare and submit a report to the Legislature containing and summarizing all of the information described in subdivision (c) from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2024, inclusive.
(b) The department shall annually thereafter, by August 15 of each year, prepare and submit a report to the Legislature containing and summarizing all of the information described in subdivision (c) from the previous calendar year.
(c) The reports described in subdivisions (a) and (b) shall contain all of the following information from the applicable time period:
(1) The department’s staffing levels for conducting firearms dealer inspections pursuant to Section 26720 and ammunition vendor inspections pursuant to Section 30345, to include both allocated positions and filled positions.
(2) The number of firearms dealer inspections conducted and, for each inspection, all of the following information:
(A) The name of the dealer.
(B) The dealer’s license number.
(C) The business address of the dealer.
(D) The number of hours spent to complete the inspection.
(E) A list of violations identified through the inspection, whether those violations were subsequently resolved and, if so, the date they were resolved, and any fines or penalties assessed.
(F) The date of reinspection, if applicable, and any violations identified during reinspection.
(G) The dates of any prior inspections.
(H) The number of DROS background checks submitted by the dealer during the one-year period prior to the inspection, and the outcome of those background checks.
(I) The total number of firearms used in crimes that were traced back to the dealer during the one-year period prior to the inspection, and the percentage of total sales by the dealer in the same period of time that the traced firearms represent.
(J) The number of firearms that the dealer reported or discovered lost or stolen during the one-year period prior to the inspection.
(3) The number of ammunition vendor inspections conducted and, for each inspection, all of the following information:
(A) The name of the vendor.
(B) The vendor’s license number.
(C) The business address of the vendor.
(D) The number of hours spent to complete the inspection.
(E) A list of violations identified through the inspection, whether those violations were subsequently resolved and, if so, the date they were resolved, and any fines or penalties assessed.
(F) The date of reinspection, if applicable, and any violations identified during reinspection.
(G) The dates of any prior inspections.
(H) The number of ammunition purchaser background checks submitted by the vendor during the one-year period prior to the inspection, and the outcome of those background checks.
(I) The amount of ammunition that the vendor reported or discovered lost or stolen during the one-year period prior to the inspection.
(4) All of the following information regarding the roster of handguns that have been determined not to be unsafe handguns, described in Section 32015:
(A) The total number of handguns on the roster.
(B) The number of handguns added to the roster during the applicable time period.
(C) The number of handguns removed from the roster during the applicable time period, including the reasons for removal.
(D) The number of handguns that were denied approval to be listed on the roster during the applicable time period, including the reasons for denial.
(d) The reports required by subdivisions (a) and (b) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.