On Sunday, California gun owners and sportsmen were dealt another blow when Governor Jerry Brown signed into law three anti-gun bills (AB 809, SB 819 and AB 144) and vetoed a fourth (SB 427) only because there is a pending lawsuit, according to his veto message on the bill. The Governor did sign one pro-gun bill (SB 610) into law.
Below is a description of each of the bills Governor Brown signed into law. AB 144, SB 819 and SB 610 will take effect on January 1, 2012. AB 809 will take effect on January 1, 2014.
Assembly Bill 809 will require the registration of any newly purchased long guns. Not only does AB 809 violate Second Amendment rights by expanding California’s gun registry to include rifles and shotguns, it is also a huge waste of taxpayer money at a time when California is drowning in debt. Gun control advocates estimate the cost of this registration at $400,000, a number that is almost certainly far less than it will actually cost to implement and enforce this registry if enacted. The only value of registration is to help governments confiscate firearms in the future. To view Governor Brown’s signing message, click here.
Senate Bill 819 allows the Department of Justice to use the Dealer Record of Sales (DROS) funds to help pay for enforcement of California firearm possession laws in the Armed & Prohibited Persons Systems program. The DROS fund monies were originally collected from every firearm purchaser to pay for the administrative process for background checks. This new law will divert hundreds of thousands of dollars of DROS fee monies that YOU have paid for background checks. As a result, the DROS fund will run out of money and when it does, they will want another increase in the fees YOU PAY for FIREARM background checks in California.
Assembly Bill 144 bans the open carrying of an unloaded handgun. In reality, the open carrying of firearms by law-abiding citizens is caused by California’s unfair concealed carry laws, which allow citizens from one county to apply for and receive a permit while neighbors in the next county are denied that basic right in an arbitrary manner.
Senate Bill 427 was vetoed by the Governor. Unfortunately, the only reason he vetoed this bill was because of the pending lawsuit against its predecessor, AB 962. Not once did the Governor mention how this bill will negatively affect California gun owners, sportsmen or retailers.
This bill would have granted authority to law enforcement to collect sales records from ammunition retailers, required ammunition vendors to notify local law enforcement of their intention to engage in the business of selling ammunition AND includes a list of calibers which would have to be registered to purchasers at the point-of-purchase. This list contains ammunition popular among hunters and collectors. This point-of-sale registration of all ammunition purchases in the state would be available for inspection by the California Department of Justice at any time. To view Governor Brown’s veto message click here.
As noted above, Governor Brown did sign one pro-gun bill (SB 610) into law.
Senate Bill 610 standardizes the application process for a permit to carry a concealed handgun and removes the requirement that a CCW applicant obtain liability insurance as a condition of obtaining a CCW permit.
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