ALBANY - Gun owners in New York with children in their homes may have to take steps to keep their weapons in safe-storage units.

The state Legislature on Monday passed a bill that aims to prevent kids from having access to guns in their homes, making it a potential criminal charge if the weapons are not safely stored.

“Despite all our progress, it is still simply too easy for guns to fall into the wrong hands,” Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, D-Scarsdale, Westchester County, the bill's sponsor, said in a statement.

The bill comes after the Democrat-controlled Legislature in January passed a package of gun-control laws, its first since the controversial SAFE Act in 2013.

What would the law do?

The measure would apply to gun owners with children younger than 16 residing in the home.

They would have to securely lock any "rifle, shotgun or firearm in an appropriate safe storage depository" if it is out of their immediate possession or render it incapable of being fired with a gun-locking device.

Failure to do so comes with a potential charge of a first-degree class A misdemeanor, which can carry a punishment of one year in jail or three years probation, as well as up to a $1,000 fine.

The bill, if signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, would also require individuals to safely store their guns when children are present in their homes, even if the kids do not live there.

It also includes a provision to require notices about the law to be posted where gun licenses are issued and at gun stores.

Lawmakers said federal law currently requires safe storage of a gun only if someone in the home is prohibited from owning a gun and doesn't address potential access by children.

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Debating the gun bill

Republicans criticized the bill, saying it would make it difficult for gun owners to use their weapons if their homes are being attacked.

They said homeowners would have to go to different places to get their guns and ammunition. They also claimed the bill is unconstitutional.

"The Second Amendment is about self-defense of your person and property," Sen. Robert Ortt, R-North Tonawanda, Niagara County, said on the Senate floor.

"And this bill, I think, quite clearly impedes on somebody’s ability to act in their own self defense and use a firearm for that purpose."

The bill doesn't apply to people younger than 16 who have a hunting license and have a rifle or shotgun.

Supporters said the law would protect children from getting access to guns and potentially shooting themselves or someone else.

The bill was initially included in the package of bills passed in January, but was ultimately removed because the language was still being crafted, lawmakers said.

The bill points to a 2017 study from the American Academy of Pediatrics that found between 2012 and 2014 on average nearly 1,300 children die and 5,790 are treated for gunshot wounds each year, finding 6 percent of those were unintentional deaths.

Advocates said Westchester County, as well as large upstate cities, including New York City, Rochester and Albany, all have safe-storage laws, as well as 27 states.

The SAFE Act in 2013 required safe storage of firearms in households where individuals have been convicted of a crime, involuntarily committed or are subject to an order of protection.

A previous law required all guns sold in New York to have a gun lock.

Sen. Peter Harckham, D-South Salem, Westchester County, pointed to the recent accidental shooting death of a 17-year-old student in his district as a reason why the law is needed.

"This is about commonsense safety," he said on the Senate floor.

JSPECTOR@Gannett.com

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