This bill establishes procedures for the sale or transfer of a firearm in the event either the seller or purchaser is not a licensed gun dealer.
Under this bill, all firearm sales or transfers, in whole or part in this state including, a sale or transfer where either the purchaser, seller, transferee, or transferor is in this state, will be subject to criminal history record checks unless specifically exempted by state or federal law. This bill specifies that the record check requirement will apply to all sales or transfers made by a licensed gun dealer, who must use the procedures for sales established under present law, as well as sales and transfers at a gun show, online, or between persons who are not licensed gun dealers.
Under this bill, no person may sell or transfer a firearm unless the person is a licensed gun dealer, the purchaser or transferee is a licensed dealer, or the requirements described below are met.
Where neither party to a prospective firearms transaction is a licensed gun dealer, the parties to the transaction must complete the sale or transfer through a licensed gun dealer as follows:
(1) The seller or transferor must deliver the firearm to a licensed gun dealer to process the sale or transfer as if the dealer is selling or transferring the firearm from the dealer's inventory to the purchaser or transferee, except that the unlicensed seller or transferor may remove the firearm from the business premises of the licensed gun dealer while the record check is being conducted. If the seller or transferor removes the firearm from the business premises of the licensed gun dealer while the record check is being conducted, the purchaser or transferee and the seller or transferor will return to the business premises of the licensed gun dealer, and the seller or transferor will again deliver the firearm to the licensed gun dealer prior to completing the sale or transfer;
(2) The licensed gun dealer must comply with all requirements of federal and state law that would apply if the licensed gun dealer were selling or transferring the firearm from the dealer's inventory to the purchaser or transferee, including conducting a record check on the prospective purchaser or transferee in accordance with federal and state law requirements and fulfilling all federal and state recordkeeping requirements;
(3) The purchaser or transferee must complete, sign, and submit all federal, state, and local forms necessary to process the required record check to the licensed gun dealer conducting the record check;
(4) If the results of the record check indicate that the purchaser or transferee is ineligible to possess a firearm, then the licensed gun dealer must return the firearm to the seller or transferor; and
(5) The licensed gun dealer may charge a fee that reflects the fair market value of the administrative costs and efforts incurred by the licensed gun dealer for facilitating the sale or transfer of the firearm.
This bill will not apply to certain transfers or persons such as a transfer between immediate family members that is a bona fide gift; the sale or transfer of an antique firearm; a temporary transfer of possession of a firearm if the transfer is necessary to prevent imminent death or serious bodily harm to the person to whom the firearm is transferred; a federally licensed gunsmith who receives a firearm solely for the purposes of service or repair; or a person who acquired a firearm other than a handgun by operation of law upon the death of the former owner of the firearm.
No transfer, temporary or otherwise, of a firearm pursuant to this bill will be valid if the person to whom it is transferred is prohibited from possessing a firearm under federal or state law. Sales tax will not be applicable to a transaction if:
(1) Neither party to a prospective firearms transaction is a licensed gun dealer, and the parties to the sale or transfer complete the transaction through a licensed gun dealer; or
(2) The sale or transfer of any firearms between two unlicensed persons if the unlicensed persons have complied with all background check requirements.