SAFE Act: Deadline approaches to re-up pistol permits

ALBANY - Those with New York pistol permits dating back prior to 2013 will soon have re-certify or face having their license automatically revoked.

State Police on Monday warned pistol-permit holders of the quickly approaching Jan. 31 deadline to re-up their license with the state, which is required as part of the SAFE Act, the state's 2013 gun-control measure.

State law requires permit holders outside Westchester, New York City and Long Island to file with the state every five years.

Those who were issued a pistol or revolver permit before Jan. 15, 2013 -- the day the SAFE Act became law -- will have to complete the recertification process by Jan. 31, 2018, according to state law.

For those who received a permit after the SAFE Act took effect, the deadline is five years after the permit was issued.

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If a permit holder misses the deadline, the permit is automatically revoked.

"As part of the recertification process, licensees must affirm that they are not prohibited from possessing firearms under state and federal law, and must also confirm certain personal information, as well as provide details about the pistols and/or revolvers they own," according to State Police.

The state's re-certification process doesn't apply to those in Westchester County, New York City and on Long Island, which had already required pistol license holders to periodically re-up prior to the SAFE Act.

In Westchester, pistol permit holders have to re-certify every five years through the county clerk, not State Police.

There is no cost to re-certify with State Police.

To re-certify, visit troopers.ny.gov/firearms. Then click "Pistol / Revolver License Recertification" if you wish to complete the process online.

Otherwise, you can download a paper version and mail the completed form to New York State Police, Pistol Permit Bureau, Building 22, 1220 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12226-2252.

Paper forms can also be picked up at State Police stations.

The SAFE Act helped lead to a large spike in pistol permits New York, according to data from the state Division of Criminal Justice Services.

In 2013, 33,030 pistol permits were approved outside New York City — a 48 percent increase from 2012 — amid gun owners' backlash to the gun-control law, which angered Second Amendment groups across New York.

Last year, 29,910 handgun permits were issued outside New York City from January through October, rivaling the SAFE Act year and boosted in part by the presidential election.