Sponsored by:

Assemblyman CHARLES MAINOR

District 31 (Hudson)

Assemblywoman ANGELICA M. JIMENEZ

District 32 (Bergen and Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

Requires firearms endorsement on driver's license or non-driver identification card.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel

An Act concerning firearms endorsement on driver's licenses and non-driver identification cards and supplementing chapter 58 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. A resident of this State who has been issued a permit to purchase a handgun or a firearms purchaser identification card shall obtain a firearms endorsement on the person's driver's license. If the resident does not have a driver's license, the resident shall obtain a firearms endorsement on a non-driver identification card issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.

b. Upon renewal of the driver's license or non-driver identification card, applicants shall provide evidence that they have not been disqualified to possess a firearm pursuant to N.J.S.2C:58-3. The chief administrator, in consultation with the Superintendent of State Police, shall determine evidence that is acceptable under this subsection.

c. A retail dealer of firearms in this State shall not sell a firearm to a resident unless the purchaser produces a valid driver's license or non-driver identification card which has a firearms endorsement.

d. A resident purchaser shall exhibit the driver's license or non-driver identification card with a firearms endorsement to any law enforcement officer upon request. Failure of a resident purchaser to exhibit the license or identification card upon request shall be presumptive evidence that the resident has not been issued a valid firearms purchaser identification card.

e. A resident who does not obtain the firearms endorsement required by subsection a. of this section shall be fined $500 to be collected in a civil action by a summary proceeding under the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.). The resident's permit to purchase a handgun or firearms identification card also shall be revoked.

f. The chief administrator shall set the fee for the firearms endorsement on the driver's license or non-driver identification card.

g. The provisions of this act shall not be construed to affect the purchase of a firearm by an out-of-State resident pursuant to the provisions of chapter 58 of Title 2C of the New Jersey Statutes.

2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month following enactment but the Chief Administrator of the Motor Vehicle Commission may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of this act.

STATEMENT

This bill would require State residents who have a permit to purchase a handgun or a firearms purchaser identification card to obtain a firearms endorsement on his or her driver's license. If the resident does not have a driver's license, the resident would be required to obtain a firearms endorsement on a non-driver identification card as issued by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC).

When the resident renews his or her driver's license or non-driver identification card, the bill would require the resident to provide evidence as required by the Chief Administrator of the MVC and the Superintendent of State Police that he or she has not been disqualified to possess a firearm.

Under the bill, firearms retailers in this State would be prohibited from selling a firearm to a resident who does not produce a valid driver's license or non-driver identification card which has a firearms endorsement.

The bill would also require residents to exhibit their driver's license or non-driver identification card with a firearms endorsement upon request of a law enforcement officer. It is presumptive evidence under the bill that a resident who fails to exhibit the license or identification card does not have a valid firearms purchaser identification card.

A fine of $500 would be imposed on a resident who fails to obtain the firearms endorsement required by the bill and his or her permit to purchase a handgun or firearms identification card would be revoked.

The fee for the firearms endorsement would be set by the chief administrator.