General Assembly		Raised Bill No. 897
January Session, 2013		LCO No. 3075
		*_____SB00897PS____032113____*
Referred to Committee on PUBLIC SAFETY AND SECURITY
Introduced by:
(PS)

AN ACT CONCERNING REGULATION OF FIREARMS.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 53-206d of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2013):

(a) (1) No person shall carry a pistol, revolver, machine gun, shotgun, rifle or other firearm, which is loaded and from which a shot may be discharged, upon his person (A) while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug, or both, or (B) while the ratio of alcohol in the blood of such person is [ten-hundredths] eight-hundredths of one per cent or more of alcohol, by weight.

(2) Any person who violates any provision of this subsection shall be guilty of a class B misdemeanor.

(b) (1) No person shall engage in hunting while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug, or both, or while impaired by the consumption of intoxicating liquor. A person shall be deemed under the influence when at the time of the alleged offense the person (A) is under the influence of intoxicating liquor or any drug, or both, or (B) has an elevated blood alcohol content. For the purposes of this subdivision, "elevated blood alcohol content" means (i) a ratio of alcohol in the blood of such person that is [ten-hundredths] eight-hundredths of one per cent or more of alcohol, by weight, or (ii) if such person has been convicted of a violation of this subsection, a ratio of alcohol in the blood of such person that is seven-hundredths of one per cent or more of alcohol, by weight. A person shall be deemed impaired when at the time of the alleged offense the ratio of alcohol in the blood of such person was more than seven-hundredths of one per cent of alcohol, by weight, but less than [ten-hundredths] eight-hundredths of one per cent of alcohol, by weight.

(2) Any person who violates any provision of this subsection shall be guilty of a class A misdemeanor.

(3) Enforcement officers of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection are empowered to arrest for a violation of the provisions of this subsection.

Sec. 2. Subsection (e) of section 29-33 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2013):

(e) Upon the sale, delivery or other transfer of any pistol or revolver, the person making the purchase or to whom the same is delivered or transferred shall sign a receipt for such pistol or revolver, which shall contain the name, [and] address and date and place of birth of such person, the date of sale, the caliber, make, model and manufacturer's number and a general description of such pistol or revolver, the identification number of such person's permit to carry pistols or revolvers, issued pursuant to subsection (b) of section 29-28, permit to sell at retail pistols or revolvers, issued pursuant to subsection (a) of said section, or eligibility certificate for a pistol or revolver, issued pursuant to section 29-36f, if any, and the authorization number designated for the transfer by the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. The person, firm or corporation selling such pistol or revolver or making delivery or transfer thereof shall give one copy of the receipt to the person making the purchase of such pistol or revolver or to whom the same is delivered or transferred, shall retain one copy of the receipt for at least five years, and shall send, by first class mail, or electronically transmit, within forty-eight hours of such sale, delivery or other transfer, one copy of the receipt to the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection and one copy of the receipt to the chief of police or, where there is no chief of police, the warden of the borough or the [first selectman] chief executive officer of the town, as the case may be, of the town in which the transferee resides.

Sec. 3. Subsection (b) of section 29-37a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2013):

(b) Upon the delivery of the firearm, the purchaser shall sign in triplicate a receipt for such firearm, which shall contain the name, [and] address and date and place of birth of such purchaser, the date of sale [,] and the caliber, make, model and manufacturer's number and a general description [thereof] of the firearm. Not later than twenty-four hours after such delivery, the vendor shall send by first class mail or electronically transfer one receipt to the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection and one receipt to the chief of police or, where there is no chief of police, the warden of the borough or the [first selectman,] chief executive officer of the town in which the purchaser resides, and shall retain one receipt, together with the original application, for at least five years. The waiting period specified in subsection (a) of this section during which delivery may not be made and the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to any federal marshal, parole officer or peace officer, or to the delivery at retail of (1) any firearm to a holder of a valid state permit to carry a pistol or revolver issued under the provisions of section 29-28 or a valid eligibility certificate issued under the provisions of section 29-36f, (2) any firearm to an active member of the armed forces of the United States or of any reserve component thereof, (3) any firearm to a holder of a valid hunting license issued pursuant to chapter 490, or (4) antique firearms. For the purposes of this section, "antique firearm" means any firearm which was manufactured in or before 1898 and any replica of such firearm, provided such replica is not designed or redesigned for using rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition except rimfire or conventional centerfire fixed ammunition which is no longer manufactured in the United States and not readily available in the ordinary channel of commercial trade.

Sec. 4. Section 29-36g of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2013 ):

(a) Requests for eligibility certificates under section 29-36f shall be submitted to the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection on application forms prescribed by the commissioner. No eligibility certificate for a pistol or revolver shall be issued under the provisions of said section unless the applicant for such certificate gives to the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection, upon the commissioner's request, full information concerning the applicant's criminal record and relevant information concerning the applicant's mental health history. The commissioner shall require each applicant to submit to state and national criminal history records checks in accordance with section 29-17a. The commissioner shall take a full description of such applicant. The commissioner shall take the fingerprints of such applicant or conduct any other method of positive identification required by the State Police Bureau of Identification or the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The commissioner shall record the date the fingerprints were taken in the applicant's file and shall conduct criminal history records checks in accordance with section 29-17a.

(b) The commissioner shall, [within] not later than sixty days [of] after receipt of the national criminal history records check from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, either approve the application and issue the eligibility certificate or deny the application and notify the applicant of the reason for such denial in writing.

[(b) (1) With respect to any application for an eligibility certificate filed with the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection on or before July 1, 1995, the commissioner shall, not later than October 1, 1995, (A) approve the application and issue the eligibility certificate, (B) issue a temporary eligibility certificate, or (C) deny the application and notify the applicant of the reason for such denial in writing.

(2) With respect to any application for an eligibility certificate filed with the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection after July 1, 1995, the commissioner shall, within ninety days, (A) approve the application and issue the eligibility certificate, (B) issue a temporary eligibility certificate, or (C) deny the application and notify the applicant of the reason for such denial in writing.

(3) A temporary certificate issued under this subsection shall be valid until such time as the commissioner either approves or denies the application.]

(c) An eligibility certificate for a pistol or revolver shall be of such form and content as the commissioner may prescribe, shall be signed by the certificate holder and shall contain an identification number, the name, address, place and date of birth, height, weight and eye color of the certificate holder and a full-face photograph of the certificate holder.

(d) A person holding an eligibility certificate issued by the commissioner shall notify the commissioner [within] not later than two business days [of] after any change of [his] such person's address. The notification shall include [his] both the old address and [his] the new address of such person.

(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 1-210 and 1-211, the name and address of a person issued an eligibility certificate for a pistol or revolver under the provisions of section 29-36f shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed, except (1) such information may be disclosed to law enforcement officials acting in the performance of their duties, including, but not limited to, employees of the United States Probation Office acting in the performance of their duties, (2) the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection may disclose such information to the extent necessary to comply with a request made pursuant to section 29-33, as amended by this act, for verification that such certificate is still valid and has not been suspended or revoked, and (3) such information may be disclosed to the Commissioner of Mental Health and Addiction Services to carry out the provisions of subsection (c) of section 17a-500.

(f) An eligibility certificate for a pistol or revolver shall not authorize the holder thereof to carry a pistol or revolver upon his person in circumstances for which a permit to carry a pistol or revolver issued pursuant to subsection (b) of section 29-28 is required under section 29-35.

Sec. 5. Section 29-37g of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2013):

(a) For the purposes of this section, (1) "gun show" means any event (A) at which fifty or more firearms are offered or exhibited for sale, transfer or exchange to the public, and (B) at which two or more persons are exhibiting one or more firearms for sale, transfer or exchange to the public; and (2) "gun show promoter" means any person who organizes, plans, promotes or operates a gun show.

(b) Not later than thirty days before commencement of a gun show, the gun show promoter shall notify the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection and the chief of police or, where there is no chief of police, the warden of the borough or the [first selectman] chief executive officer of the town in which the gun show is to take place of the date, time, duration and location of the gun show.

(c) No person, firm or corporation shall sell, deliver or otherwise transfer a firearm at a gun show until such person, firm or corporation has complied with the provisions of section 29-36l.

This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1	October 1, 2013	53-206d
Sec. 2	October 1, 2013	29-33(e)
Sec. 3	October 1, 2013	29-37a(b)
Sec. 4	October 1, 2013	29-36g
Sec. 5	October 1, 2013	29-37g

PS

Joint Favorable