Clear As Cement

[Subdeacon Joe]

https://www.firearmspolicy.org/fpc_ammo_splainer?fbclid=IwAR0Ji51zjU9pKyp3Hz_8Yww7GcRbrOnk8jf0Na3N4D3xyUgaJ60LDOtMI84

 

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Q: In 2019, will I need an "ammunition purchase permit" or some special DOJ thing in order to buy ammo?

A: No. According to the DOJ (and, apparently, the Legislative Counsel), SB 1235 'pre-amended' Proposition 63 -- conditional on the passage of Proposition 63 -- and repealed that part of Prop 63, replacing those provisions with other provisions as passed by the Legislature. Who knows if that was even legal. Depending on who you ask, this was either a crafty play by the Legislature to bump some of Gavin Newsom’s agenda, or perhaps — legally — Gavin’s Prop 63 should have prevailed over the SB 1235 statutes since it was the “later enacted” law. Right now, the Legislative Counsel and DOJ are using SB 1235’s repeal-and-replace language.

Q: Uhh, what did what to what?

A: SB 1235 (2016, Sen. Kevin “Ghost Gun” de Leon) was a bill that the Legislature passed. Proposition 63 was a ballot measure that enacted "initiative statutes" by a vote of the people of the State. And, in general, only other initiative statutes (passed by the people) can change other initiative statutes. Article II, Section 10(a) of the California Constitution says that "The Legislature....may amend or repeal an initiative statute by another statute that becomes effective only when approved by the electors unless the initiative statute permits amendment or repeal without their approval." But Proposition 63 had a provision (Section 13) that gave the Legislature permission: "The provisions of this measure may be amended by a vote of 55 percent of the members of each house of the Legislature and signed by the Governor so long as such amendments are consistent with and further the intent of this Act." And SB 1235 was, indeed, passed by such a vote and signed into law by Gov. Brown. So, in a first-of-its-kind kind of thing, SB 1235 (may have) preemptively repealed parts of Proposition 63, and here we are.

Q: What kind of "other provisions" about ammunition did SB 1235 change?

A: Quite a few. But regarding ammunition purchasing, SB 1235 replaced Proposition 63's "purchase permits" -- the Gavin Newsom Ammunition Ration Card -- with a phased-in framework for ammunition buyers and sellers, eventually leading to a DOJ "point-of-sale" background check system for ammunition transfers (effective July 1, 2019).

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CHECK OUT OUR COMPARISON OF CALIF. PROP 63 (2016), SB 1235, AND THE STATUTES HERE

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Q: But that’s what I want to know. I keep hearing things about July 2019. Is that a thing?

A: Yes. According to Cal. Penal Code section 30370:

(a) Commencing July 1, 2019, the department shall electronically approve the purchase or transfer of ammunition through a vendor, as defined in Section 16151, except as otherwise specified. This approval shall occur at the time of purchase or transfer, prior to the purchaser or transferee taking possession of the ammunition. Pursuant to the authorization specified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 30352, the following persons are authorized to purchase ammunition:

(1) A purchaser or transferee whose information matches an entry in the Automated Firearms System (AFS) and who is eligible to possess ammunition as specified in subdivision (b).

(2) A purchaser or transferee who has a current certificate of eligibility issued by the department pursuant to Section 26710.

(3) A purchaser or transferee who is not prohibited from purchasing or possessing ammunition in a single ammunition transaction or purchase made pursuant to the procedure developed pursuant to subdivision (c).

(b) To determine if the purchaser or transferee is eligible to purchase or possess ammunition pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (a), the department shall cross-reference the ammunition purchaser’s or transferee’s name, date of birth, current address, and driver’s license or other government identification number, as described in Section 28180, with the information maintained in the AFS. If the purchaser’s or transferee’s information does not match an AFS entry, the transaction shall be denied. If the purchaser’s or transferee’s information matches an AFS entry, the department shall determine if the purchaser or transferee falls within a class of persons who are prohibited from owning or possessing ammunition by cross-referencing with the Prohibited Armed Persons File. If the purchaser or transferee is prohibited from owning or possessing a firearm, the transaction shall be denied.

(c) The department shall develop a procedure in which a person who is not prohibited from purchasing or possessing ammunition may be approved for a single ammunition transaction or purchase. The department shall recover the cost of processing and regulatory and enforcement activities related to this section by charging the ammunition transaction or purchase applicant a fee not to exceed the fee charged for the department’s Dealers’ Record of Sale (DROS) process, as described in Section 28225 and not to exceed the department’s reasonable costs.

(d) A vendor is prohibited from providing a purchaser or transferee ammunition without department approval. If a vendor cannot electronically verify a person’s eligibility to purchase or possess ammunition via an Internet connection, the department shall provide a telephone line to verify eligibility. This option is available to ammunition vendors who can demonstrate legitimate geographical and telecommunications limitations in submitting the information electronically and who are approved by the department to use the telephone line verification.

(e) The department shall recover the reasonable cost of regulatory and enforcement activities related to this article by charging ammunition purchasers and transferees a per transaction fee not to exceed one dollar ($1), provided, however, that the fee may be increased at a rate not to exceed any increases in the California Consumer Price Index as compiled and reported by the Department of Industrial Relations, not to exceed the reasonable regulatory and enforcement costs.

(f) A fund to be known as the “Ammunition Safety and Enforcement Special Fund” is hereby created within the State Treasury. All fees received pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the Ammunition Safety and Enforcement Special Fund and, notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, are continuously appropriated for purposes of implementing, operating, and enforcing the ammunition authorization program provided for in this section and Section 30352 and for repaying the start-up loan provided for in Section 30371.

(g) The Department of Justice is authorized to adopt regulations to implement this section.

Q: Is that the “point-of-sale” background check people are talking about?

A: Yep.

Stop 2A Tyranny in CA!

Q: Doesn’t that mean that CA DOJ might reject ammunition sales to someone that doesn’t have everything matched in the DOJ’s Automated Firearms System (AFS), like their name, date of birth, current address, or driver’s license or other government identification number?

A: It could, if the information doesn’t match up. But do note that the law says that the check must match “an entry in the Automated Firearms System” (italics added). That’s singular. So gun owners should make sure that their AFS records contain at least one entry with their true and correct name, date of birth, current address, and driver’s license or other government identification number.

This is a good time to say that, in general, it’s a good idea to know what CA DOJ has in their AFS system about you. Some people check their AFS records every year, just in case, because it’s a disaster of a database and might be partially or totally wrong.

You can send CA DOJ this form (per its instructions) and they will mail you back a copy of their AFS records, if they have any.

On a related note, you can also send in a PFEC form to see if CA DOJ thinks it’s legal for you to have or try to buy firearms or ammunition.

Q: Is there anything else that starts making gun owners’ lives even more miserable on July 1, 2019?

A: Sadly, yes. Cal. Penal Code section 30352 lays out some other things that the law will require for ammunition purchases beginning on July 1, 2019.

(a) Commencing July 1, 2019, an ammunition vendor shall not sell or otherwise transfer ownership of any ammunition without, at the time of delivery, legibly recording the following information on a form to be prescribed by the Department of Justice:

(1) The date of the sale or other transfer.

(2) The purchaser's or transferee's driver's license or other identification number and the state in which it was issued.

(3) The brand, type, and amount of ammunition sold or otherwise transferred.

(4) The purchaser's or transferee's full name and signature.

(5) The name of the salesperson who processed the sale or other transaction.

(6) The purchaser's or transferee's full residential address and telephone number.

(7) The purchaser's or transferee's date of birth.

(b) Commencing July 1, 2019, an ammunition vendor shall electronically submit to the department the information required by subdivision (a) for all sales and transfers of ownership of ammunition. The department shall retain this information in a database to be known as the Ammunition Purchase Records File. This information shall remain confidential and may be used by the department and those entities specified in, and pursuant to, subdivision (b) or (c) of Section 11105, through the California Law Enforcement Telecommunications System, only for law enforcement purposes. The ammunition vendor shall not use, sell, disclose, or share the information for any other purpose other than the submission required by this subdivision without the express written consent of the purchaser or transferee.

(c) Commencing on July 1, 2019, only those persons listed in this subdivision, or those persons or entities listed in subdivision (e), shall be authorized to purchase ammunition. Prior to delivering any ammunition, an ammunition vendor shall require bona fide evidence of identity to verify that the person who is receiving delivery of the ammunition is a person or entity listed in subdivision (e) or one of the following:

(1) A person authorized to purchase ammunition pursuant to Section 30370.

(2) A person who was approved by the department to receive a firearm from the ammunition vendor, pursuant to Section 28220, if that vendor is a licensed firearms dealer, and the ammunition is delivered to the person in the same transaction as the firearm.

(d) Commencing July 1, 2019, the ammunition vendor shall verify with the department, in a manner prescribed by the department, that the person is authorized to purchase ammunition. If the person is not listed as an authorized ammunition purchaser, the vendor shall deny the sale or transfer.

(e) Subdivisions (a) and (d) shall not apply to sales or other transfers of ownership of ammunition by ammunition vendors to any of the following, if properly identified:

(1) An ammunition vendor.

(2) A person who is on the centralized list of exempted federal firearms licensees maintained by the department pursuant to Article 6 (commencing with Section 28450) of Chapter 6 of Division 6.

(3) A person who purchases or receives ammunition at a target facility holding a business or other regulatory license, provided that the ammunition is at all times kept within the facility’s premises.

(4) A gunsmith.

(5) A wholesaler.

(6) A manufacturer or importer of firearms or ammunition licensed pursuant to Chapter 44 (commencing with Section 921) of Title 18 of the United States Code, and the regulations issued pursuant thereto.

(7) An authorized law enforcement representative of a city, county, city and county, or state or federal government, if the sale or other transfer of ownership is for exclusive use by that government agency, and, prior to the sale, delivery, or transfer of the handgun ammunition, written authorization from the head of the agency authorizing the transaction is presented to the person from whom the purchase, delivery, or transfer is being made. Proper written authorization is defined as verifiable written certification from the head of the agency by which the purchaser, transferee, or person otherwise acquiring ownership is employed, identifying the employee as an individual authorized to conduct the transaction, and authorizing the transaction for the exclusive use of the agency by which that individual is employed.

(8) (A) A properly identified sworn peace officer, as defined in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2, or properly identified sworn federal law enforcement officer, who is authorized to carry a firearm in the course and scope of the officer's duties.

(B) (i) Proper identification is defined as verifiable written certification from the head of the agency by which the purchaser or transferee is employed, identifying the purchaser or transferee as a full-time paid peace officer who is authorized to carry a firearm in the course and scope of the officer's duties.

(ii) The certification shall be delivered to the vendor at the time of purchase or transfer and the purchaser or transferee shall provide bona fide evidence of identity to verify that he or she is the person authorized in the certification.

(iii) The vendor shall keep the certification with the record of sale and submit the certification to the department.

(f) The department is authorized to adopt regulations to implement the provisions of this section.

 

[Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967]

This is sickening.  How can it be legal?  Are there challenges...?

 

Amazing.  From a state where pot is now legal, crimes of theft of less than $950 are only "ticketable" offenses, local authorities are forbidden from advising ICE when any illegal arrested for any crime is released*, county jails have to release inmates after a fraction of sentences are served (if incarcerated at all) - and SO much more.  

 

*Often to go on and commit more crimes - an officer was shot and killed two days ago by an illegal who was a repeat offender.

 

But if you want to buy some shotgun shells for trap shooting...?  

 

Sheesh!!  

 

 

 

 

 

[Sedalia Dave]

Now I have a headache and am in need a large glass of refreshment.

[J.D. Daily]

I have one word of wisdom for CAS & other shooting sports participants who live in the Peoples Republic, "RELOAD".  Unfortunately that is not a option for rimfire calibers.  If you have friends & family who are residents of free states they can bring in ammo and leave the unused ammo for their hosts when exiting. 

[The Shoer 27979]

On 12/28/2018 at 9:58 PM, Hardpan Curmudgeon SASS #8967 said:

This is sickening.  How can it be legal?  Are there challenges...?

 

Amazing.  From a state where pot is now legal, crimes of theft of less than $950 are only "ticketable" offenses, local authorities are forbidden from advising ICE when any illegal arrested for any crime is released*, county jails have to release inmates after a fraction of sentences are served (if incarcerated at all) - and SO much more.  

 

*Often to go on and commit more crimes - an officer was shot and killed two days ago by an illegal who was a repeat offender.

 

But if you want to buy some shotgun shells for trap shooting...?  

 

Sheesh!!  

 

 

 

 

 

Brother Hardpan this and many other reason are why I left California,

[Lawdog Dago Dom]

What's even more depressing is I can see this kind of crap adopted by other "progressive" leaders. I just found out that Illinois' new Governor-elect has started appointing former Cook County Board members and staff to his Gubernatorial inner-circle. Hardly a 2A friendly group. I just hope Illinois gun owners are watching this guy with both eyes open.

 

[Subdeacon Joe]

48 minutes ago, Lawdog Dago Dom said:

What's even more depressing is I can see this kind of crap adopted by other "progressive" leaders. I just found out that Illinois' new Governor-elect has started appointing former Cook County Board members and staff to his Gubernatorial inner-circle. Hardly a 2A friendly group. I just hope Illinois gun owners are watching this guy with both eyes open.

 

 

Exactly why GOA, NRA,et al. needs to be fighting this stuff tooth and nail here in CA.