Salinas Municipal Code Ch. 12A Firearms

This chapter shall be known as the Firearms Dealer Permit Ordinance.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

The following words and phrases, whenever used in this chapter, shall be construed as defined in this section:

A. "Firearm" means any device, designed to be used as a weapon or modified to be used as a weapon, from which is expelled through a barrel a projectile by the force of an explosion or other form of combustion.

B. "Firearm dealer" means a person licensed pursuant to California Penal Code Section 12071 to engage in the business of selling, transferring or leasing, or advertising for sale, transfer or lease, or offering or exposing for sale, transfer or lease, any firearm.

C. "To engage in the business" means the conduct of a business of selling, transferring or leasing of any firearm; or the preparation for such conduct of business as evidenced by the securing of applicable federal or state licenses; or the holding of one's self out as engaged in the business of selling, transferring or leasing of any firearm, or the selling, transferring or leasing of firearms in quantity, in series, or in individual transactions, or in any other manner indicative of trade.

D. "Person" means natural person, association, cooperative partnership, firm, association or corporation.

E. "Safe firearm storage device" or "safe storage device" shall mean any of the following devices, appropriate to the firearm, the proper use of which will prevent the unintentional discharge of the firearm:

(1) Any type of reusable locking device that is of adequate quality and construction to prevent children and unauthorized users from firing the firearm and that cannot be readily removed from the firearm or that the firearm cannot be readily removed from the device except by an authorized user utilizing a key, combination, or other method of access intended by the manufacturer of the device.

(2) The device shall be capable of rendering the sold, leased or transferred firearm inoperable when properly installed by keeping the trigger from releasing the sear thereby dropping the firing pin, or locking the action of the firearm open so that it will not go into battery or discharge. Any device integrated into the firearm by the manufacturer, which meets the criteria of this paragraph, shall qualify as a safe firearm device.

(3) All locks or locking devices sold, furnished or made available in order to comply with the provisions of this article shall have a unique key, or a combination with at least three tumblers.

(4) Any other firearm storage device approved by a California or federal law enforcement agency shall suffice under this section.

A firearms "safety" shall not be considered a safe storage device for purposes of this article.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1; Ord. No. 2373 (NCS), § 1.)

It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of operating or managing any business which sells, transfers, leases or offers or advertises for sale, transfer or lease, any firearm without first obtaining a firearms dealer permit from the chief of police of the Salinas police department.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

An applicant for a permit under this chapter shall file with the chief of police a sworn application in writing, on a form to be furnished by the city. The applicant shall provide all information requested, including proof of compliance with all applicable federal, state and local laws when required by the chief of police, or the application will not be deemed complete. The application shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee, as established by resolution, which, to the extent practicable, shall reflect the cost of enforcing the requirements of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

The chief of police shall conduct an appropriate investigation to determine for the protection of the public safety whether the permit may be issued. The chief of police may require additional information of an applicant deemed necessary to complete the investigation.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

The chief of police shall deny the issuance of a permit when any of the following conditions exist:

(a) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, is under the age of twenty-one years.

(b) The applicant is not licensed as required by all applicable federal, state and local laws.

(c) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, has had a similar type of permit previously revoked or denied for good cause within the immediately preceding two years.

(d) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, has made a false or misleading statement of a material fact or omission of a material fact in the application for a permit.

(e) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, has been convicted of:

(1) Any offense so as to disqualify the applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, from owning or possessing a firearm under applicable federal, state and local laws;

(2) Any offense relating to the manufacturing, sale, possession, use or registration of any firearm or dangerous or deadly weapon;

(3) Any offense involving the use of force or violence upon the person of another;

(4) Any offense involving theft, fraud, dishonesty or deceit;

(5) Any offense involving the manufacture, sale, possession or use of any controlled substance as defined by the California Health and Safety Code as said definition now reads or may hereafter be amended to read.

(f) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, is an unlawful user of any controlled substance as defined by the California Health and Safety Code as said definition now reads or may hereafter be amended to read, or is an excessive user of alcohol to the extent that such use would impair his or her fitness to be a dealer in firearms.

(g) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, has been adjudicated as a mental defective, or has been committed to a mental defective, or has been committed to a mental institution, or suffers from any psychological disturbance which would impair his or her fitness to be a dealer in concealable firearms.

(h) The operation of the business as proposed will not comply with all applicable federal, state and local laws.

(i) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, proposes to operate in the following locations:

(1) Within a zoning district in which general retail sales commercial activities are not a permitted or conditional use;

(2) Within a zoning district in which residential use is the principal permitted or maintained use. This restriction shall not apply to a federally registered firearms dealer who meets all of the following conditions:

(A) Sold, transferred or leased at least one firearm within the twelve months immediately preceding July 12, 1994;

(B) Has no officer, employee or agent assisting the dealer in the business;

(C) Does not conduct any advertising or publicity regarding the firearms business;

(D) Does not sell, transfer or lease more than fifty firearms in any calendar year;

(E) Has no felony or misdemeanor conviction;

(F) Maintains all state and federal firearms licensing requirements;

(G) Fully complies with the firearm storage requirements of Penal Code Section 12071(b)(14);

(H) Requires all purchasers to take handling instruction from the dealer or to provide certification of prior gun handling experience. This requirement is not a substitution for required federal, state or local safety courses;

(I) Agrees to city inspection of the residential premises with reasonable cause and upon one hour notice, except that neither notice nor cause is required for city inspection of firearms inventory and required records. Nothing contained in this subsection shall prevent inspections or searches as otherwise allowed by law;

(J) Agrees to indemnify, defend and hold the city, its officers, agents and employees harmless from claims arising from the negligence of the residential firearms dealer; provided, however, this exemption will terminate in the event that the dealer fails to comply with all of the terms of this chapter or the dealer loses the federal firearms permit or the dealer vacates the residence in which the dealer sold, transferred or leased firearms as of July 12, 1994, whichever occurs first;

(3) Within one thousand feet of a public or private day care center or day care home, or within one thousand feet of any elementary, junior high or high school, whether public or private;

(4) Within one thousand five hundred feet of the exterior limits of any other premises occupied by a dealer in firearms.

The distance restriction in this subsection shall not apply to any firearm dealer that is operating as of June 7, 1994 in a zoning district in which general retail sales commercial activities are either permitted or conditional uses.

(j) The applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof does not have, and/or cannot provide evidence of a possessory interest in the property at which the proposed business will be conducted.

(k) Any ground for denial exists as specified in the Salinas City Code.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1; Ord. No. 2232 (NCS), § 1; Ord. No. 2241 (NCS), § 1; Ord. No. 2373 (NCS), § 1.)

The police department is authorized access to the state summary criminal history information maintained by the Department of Justice for applicants under this chapter for a firearms permit. The state summary criminal history information is limited to the criminal conduct specified in Section 12A-6. An applicant, or an officer, employee or agent thereof, shall be fingerprinted by the police department, and all costs for administering and processing the fingerprints shall be borne solely by the applicant, officer, employee or agent.

(Ord. No. 2241 (NCS), § 2.)

All permits issued pursuant to this chapter shall be in the form prescribed by the Attorney General of the state of California.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

All permits issued pursuant to this chapter shall expire one year after the date of issuance; provided, however, that such permits may be renewed by the chief of police for additional periods of one year upon the approval of an application for renewal by the chief of police and payment of the renewal fee. Such renewal application must be received by the chief of police, in completed form no later than forty-five days prior to the expiration of the current permit.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

The assignment or attempt to assign any permit issued pursuant to this chapter is unlawful and any such assignment or attempt to assign a permit shall render the permit null and void.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

Any permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to all of the following conditions, any breach of which shall be sufficient cause for revocation of the permit by the chief of police:

A. The business shall be carried on only in the building located at the street address shown on the license.

B. The permittee shall comply with Sections 12071, 12072, 12073, 12074, 12076, and 12077 and 12082 of the California Penal Code, to the extent that the provisions remain in effect.

C. It shall be unlawful for any firearm dealer to sell, lease or otherwise transfer ownership of any firearm without also providing with the firearm a safe firearm storage device designed to prevent the unintentional discharge of the firearm being sold, leased or transferred. Such device shall be of a type approved by the chief of police and/or his/her designee. The permittee shall advise the chief of police of the type of device at the time of application for the permit, renewal of the permit or at any time the permittee desires to change the type of device previously approved by the chief of police.

(1) The safe firearm storage device shall be locked in place, properly attached to, or properly covering, the firearm at the time it leaves the firearm dealer's premises.

(2) Nothing in this article shall prevent the firearm dealer from recovering the cost of providing a safe firearm storage device by charging a price for the safe storage device, either separately or as part of the price of the firearm.

D. In connection with any sale, lease or transfer of a firearm, the firearm dealer shall obtain from the person receiving the firearm a signed acknowledgement that the dealer has provided the seller, lessor or transferee with a safe firearm storage device as required by this section.

E. Subsections 12A-10(C) and (D) are effective until January 1, 2002. On that date, Assembly Bill 106, enacting Penal Code Section 12087 et seq., shall become effective and the two subsections shall be superceded by state law and have no further force and effect.

Any permit pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to such additional conditions as the chief of police finds are reasonably related to the purpose of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1; Ord. No. 2373 (NCS), § 1.)

In addition to any provisions contained in this chapter, any circumstances constituting grounds for denial shall also constitute grounds for revocation.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

A. Any person whose application for a permit under this chapter has been denied, or whose permit has been revoked pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, shall have the right to a hearing before the chief of police or a designee prior to final denial or prior to revocation.

B. The chief of police shall give the applicant or permittee written notice of the intent to deny the application or to revoke the permit. The notice shall set forth the ground or grounds for the chief of police's intent to deny the application or to revoke the permit, and shall inform the applicant or permittee that he or she has ten days from the date of receipt of the notice to file a written request for a hearing. The application may be denied or the permit revoked if a written hearing request is not received within the ten-day period.

C. If the applicant or permittee files a timely hearing request, the chief of police shall set a time and place for the hearing. All parties involved shall have the right to offer testimonial, documentary and tangible evidence bearing on the issues, to be represented by counsel, and to confront and cross examine any witnesses against them. The decision of the chief of police whether to deny the application or revoke the permit is final and nonappealable.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

No permit shall be issued or continued pursuant to this chapter unless there is in full force and effect a policy of insurance in such form as the city attorney deems proper, executed by an insurance company approved by the city attorney whereby the applicant or permittee is insured against liability for damage to property and for injury to or death of any person as a result of the sale, transfer or lease, or advertising for sale, transfer or lease, or offering or exposing for sale, transfer or lease, any firearm. The minimum liability limits shall not be less than one million dollars for damage to or destruction of property in any one incident, and one million dollars for the death or injury to any one person; provided, however, that additional amounts may be required by the city attorney if deemed necessary.

Such policy of insurance shall contain an endorsement providing that the policy will not be cancelled until notice in writing has been given to the city, addressed in care of the chief of police, 220 Lincoln Avenue, Salinas, California, 93901, at least thirty days immediately prior to the time such cancellation becomes effective. Further, such policy of insurance shall indemnify, defend and hold harmless the city, its officers, agents and employees, from claims arising from the negligence of the applicant or permittee.

The requirement for liability insurance shall not apply to residential gun dealers who operate pursuant to the requirements of Section 12A-6(i)(2)).

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1; Ord. 2241 (NCS), § 3.)

Any and all investigating officials of the city shall have the right to enter the building designated in the permit from time to time during regular business hours to make reasonable inspections to observe and enforce compliance with building, mechanical, fire, electrical, plumbing or health regulations, and provisions of this chapter. A police investigator may conduct compliance inspections to insure conformance to all federal, state and local law, and all provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

Any person engaging in the business of selling, transferring or leasing, or advertising for sale, transfer or lease or offering or exposing for sale, transfer or lease, any firearm on the effective date of this chapter shall have a period of sixty days after such effective date to comply with the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

A. If the dealer violates any federal, state and local county or city law, the chief of police may immediately suspend the right of the dealer to sell firearms. This temporary suspension will not exceed three days. If the violation results in a criminal charge filed in court by a federal, state or county district attorney, such permit to sell firearms may be suspended until the case is adjudicated in a court of law.

B. Notice of suspension shall be mailed to the person(s) who made application for the permit and shall be delivered to the address listed on the permit.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

Any person who violates any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)

This chapter shall be enforced to the full extent of the authority of the city of Salinas. If any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence or word of this chapter is deemed to be invalid or beyond the authority of the city of Salinas, either on its face or as applied, the invalidity of such provision shall not affect the other sections, subsections, paragraphs, sentences or words of this chapter, and the applications thereof; and to that end the section, subsections, paragraphs, sentences and words of this chapter shall be deemed severable.

(Ord. No. 2229 (NCS), § 1.)