Under existing law, a firearms dealer or licensee means a person who has a valid federal firearms license, has a regulatory or business license, has a valid seller’s permit issued by the State Board of Equalization, has a certificate of eligibility issued by the Department of Justice, has a license granted by a duly constituted licensing authority of any city, county, or city and county, and is among those recorded in the centralized list of licensed firearms dealers kept by the Department of Justice. Existing law regulates licensed firearms dealers and provides that a license is subject to forfeiture for a breach of specified prohibitions in existing law.

This bill would authorize the Department of Justice to impose a civil fine not exceeding $1000 for a breach of those prohibitions, and a civil fine not exceeding $3,000 for a breach of those prohibitions when the licensee has received written notification from the department regarding the breach and fails to take corrective action, as specified, or the department determines the licensee committed the breach knowingly or with gross negligence. The bill would authorize the department to adopt regulations to carry out these provisions.

Existing law, subject to exceptions pertaining to specified gun shows or events, requires a firearms dealer to conduct business only in the buildings designated in the dealer’s license. This bill would, in addition, commencing January 1, 2021, prohibit a firearms dealer license from designating a building that is a residence, as defined, as a building where the licensee’s business may be conducted. The bill would also provide that these provisions would not preclude or preempt a local ordinance that places additional or more stringent requirements on firearms dealers regarding where the business of the licensee may be conducted. The bill would require a licensee to ensure that its business premises are monitored by a video surveillance system that, among other requirements, visually records and archives footage of (1) every sale or transfer of a firearm or ammunition, in a manner that includes audio recording (2) all places where firearms or ammunition are stored, displayed, carried, handled, sold, or transferred; (3) the immediate exterior surroundings of the licensee’s business premises; and (4) all parking areas owned or leased by the licensee.

The bill would, commencing January 1, 2021, require a licensee to obtain a policy of commercial insurance that insures the licensee against liability for damage to property and for injury to or death of any person as a result of the theft, sale, lease or transfer or offering for sale, lease or transfer of a firearm or ammunition, or any other operations of the business and business premises, in the amount of $1,000,000 per incident, as specified. The bill would also provide that these provisions would not preclude or preempt a local ordinance that places additional or more stringent requirements on firearms dealers regarding insurance pertaining to the licensee’s business.