HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES	H.C.R. NO.	86
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2023		H.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

HOUSE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE REFERENCE BUREAU TO REPORT ON SYSTEMS OF FIREARMS INSURANCE AND OTHER FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS PERTAINING TO FIREARMS.

 

 

 

WHEREAS, the prevention of gun violence is an urgent matter of public health, safety, and welfare; and

 

WHEREAS, the country has seen numerous high profile shootings over many decades; and

 

WHEREAS, Hawaii has long been a leader in protecting the public from the serious risks of firearms and gun violence by implementing commonsense policies designed to protect the State's residents and communities, while also protecting the exercise of constitutional rights; and

 

WHEREAS, although the United States Supreme Court has held that the Second Amendment provides for an individual right to keep and bear arms for lawful purposes, the Second Amendment is not "a regulatory straightjacket", New York State Rifle & Pistol Ass'n, Inc. v. Bruen, 142 S.Ct. 2111, 2133 (2022), and states retain authority to enact "a 'variety' of gun regulations", id. at 2162 (Kavanaugh, J., concurring), to ensure that those who carry firearms are "law-abiding, responsible citizens", id. at 2131, 2156; and

 

WHEREAS, there is a long history in the United States of policies and legal frameworks designed to promote financial responsibility in connection with firearms, such as requirements relating to the posting of surety bonds; and

 

WHEREAS, in recent years, legislation has been introduced or considered in a number of states, including Hawaii, that would establish systems of mandatory firearms insurance or other financial responsibility requirements; and

 

WHEREAS, in 2022 the City of San Jose required residents who own or possess a firearm to obtain a homeowner's, renter's, or gun liability insurance policy covering losses or damages resulting from any accidental use of a firearm; and

 

WHEREAS, in 2022 the State of New Jersey became the first state to require all persons licensed to carry a firearm to maintain and provide proof of liability insurance on account of injury, death, or damage to property arising out of ownership, maintenance, operation, or use of a firearm; and

 

WHEREAS, systems of insurance and other financial responsibility requirements can, in some contexts, play an important role by facilitating compensation for injured persons and reducing risks by encouraging safer behavior; and

 

WHEREAS, firearms insurance and other financial responsibility requirements pertaining to firearms are an important and rapidly evolving area of policy that is deserving of further study and consideration; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2023, the Senate concurring, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to summarize the relevant mandatory insurance laws of the State of New Jersey and the City of San Jose, and any similar insurance laws that other U.S. jurisdictions may be enacting, as well as any current laws that impose other financial responsibilities on firearms ; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that as a part of the report, the Insurance Commissioner is requested to provide an analysis of the feasibility and costs of firearms insurance and other financial responsibility requirements and to examine how these systems may be implemented in the State; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2024; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Attorney General, Director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Insurance Commissioner, and Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau.

 

 

 

Report Title: 

Firearms; Insurance; Financial Responsibility; LRB; Study; DCCA; Attorney General