Illinois: House to Consider FOID Fee Increase & Mandatory Fingerprinting

On May 27^th, the Illinois state House Judiciary Committee voted to pass House Floor Amendment 2 and House Floor Amendment 3 to Senate Bill 1966, sending them to the House floor for further consideration.  Among other things, they would increase the fees and also impose a mandatory fingerprinting requirement for both new FOID and renewal applications.  Please contact your state Representative and urge them to OPPOSE HFA 2 and HFA 3 to SB 1966.  Click the “Take Action” button below to contact your state Representative.

House Floor Amendment 2 and House Floor Amendment 3 to Senate Bill 1966, sponsored by Representative Kathleen Willis (D-77), would:

• Criminalize private transfers, with violations being punished as a Class 4 felony.
• Require the recipient of a firearm gifted by a family member to call into Illinois State Police within 60 days to run a background check on themselves, even though they must already hold a FOID.
• Allow for the indefinite delay of firearm transfers.  Currently, federal law allows a licensed firearm dealer (FFL) to release a firearm after three business days if they have not received any additional correspondence after receiving a “delay” when conducting the initial background check for a firearm transfer.  This safeguard prevents the potential shutdown of sales via endless delays and allows law-abiding individuals to take possession of a firearm in a timely manner.
• Mandate FOID applicants submit fingerprints, including for renewals, which would not add anything of investigative value.
• Increase FOID processing time from one calendar month to thirty business days, which can span more than six weeks.
• Reduce the duration of the FOID from ten years to five while also increasing the application fee from $10 to $20, resulting in a significant increase in the cost to maintain a FOID for the same amount of time.
• Require FOID applicants pay all costs for fingerprinting and processing the background check, totaling around $150 on top of the application fee.
• Prohibit those with a revoked FOID from transferring firearms to someone in the same household, which would create confusion in determining the owner of the firearms and would take away the right to self-defense from individuals due to the alleged actions of someone else in their household.
• Require the owner of the seized firearms to petition the court to have them transferred to a third party.

Again, please click the “Take Action” button above to contact your state Representative and urge them to OPPOSE HFA 2 and HFA 3 to SB 1966.