by Dr. Eowyn
A month ago, on November 25, 2019, New Jersey Assemblywoman Patricia Egan Jones, 79, introduced a bill that will discourage and prevent gun ownership by:
- Requiring a minimum of $50,000 in liability insurance for possession of a firearm.
- Fining violators of the liability insurance policy in the amount of $1,000 for first offenders and $5,000 for second offenders.
- Confiscating the firearm if a gunowner fails to produce an insurance identification certificate.
- Requiring firearm sellers to be licensed and to keep a detailed record of every gun buyer which must be delivered to law enforcement within 5 days of the purchase.
- Requiring an application for a permit to buy a gun, including the names and addresses of two references.
- Restricting purchases of handguns to no more than one handgun a month.
- Banning the purchase of sawed-off shotguns.
The bill, A-6003, states:
1 a. No person shall possess a firearm unless the person has first obtained a policy of firearm liability insurance in an amount of not less than $50,000, specifically covering any damages resulting from any negligent or willful acts involving the use of that firearm while it is owned by that person.
b. A person who violates the provisions of subsection a. of this section shall be subject to:
(1) a fine of $1,000 for a first offense; and
(2) a fine of $5,000 and revocation of and disqualification for any permit, identification card, or license to purchase, carry, or possess any firearm pursuant to N.J.S.2C:58-3 or N.J.S.2C:58-4 for a period of five years, for a second or subsequent offense….
3 a. No person shall possess a firearm without also carrying an insurance identification certificate with the insured firearm, which shall be exhibited to any law enforcement officer on request.
b. Failure to carry or exhibit an insurance identification certificate pursuant to subsection a. of this section shall result in:
(1) The seizure of the firearm by the law enforcement officer….
4 b. Any insurer that issues a policy for firearm liability insurance shall keep records of every firearm liability insurance policy it issues, and provide copies of the information to the police authorities of any municipality or to the New Jersey State Police upon request….
6 a. Licensing of retail dealers and their employees. No retail dealer of firearms nor any employee of a retail dealer shall sell or expose for sale, or possess with the intent of selling, any firearm unless licensed to do so as hereinafter provided. The superintendent shall prescribe standards and qualifications for retail dealers of firearms and their employees for the protection of the public safety, health and welfare….
6 a (6) The dealer shall keep a true record of every handgun sold, given or otherwise delivered or disposed of, in accordance with the provisions of subsections b. through e. of this section and the record shall note whether a trigger lock, locked case, gun box, container or other secure facility was delivered along with the handgun.
(7) A dealer shall not knowingly deliver more than one handgun to any person within any 30-day period. This limitation shall not apply to:
(a) a federal, State, or local law enforcement officer or agency purchasing handguns for use by officers in the actual performance of their law enforcement duties….
b. Records. Every person engaged in the retail business of selling, leasing or otherwise transferring a handgun, as a retail dealer or otherwise, shall keep a register in which shall be entered the time of the sale, lease or other transfer, the date thereof, the name, age, date of birth, complexion, occupation, residence and a physical description including distinguishing physical characteristics, if any, of the purchaser, lessee or transferee, the name and permanent home address of the person making the sale, lease or transfer, the place of the transaction, and the make, model, manufacturer’s number, caliber and other marks of identification on such handgun and such other information as the superintendent shall deem necessary for the proper enforcement of this chapter. The register shall be retained by the dealer and shall be made available at all reasonable hours for inspection by any law enforcement officer….
e. Copies of register entries; delivery to chief of police or county clerk. Within five days of the date of the sale, assignment or transfer, the dealer shall deliver or mail by certified mail, return receipt requested, legible copies of the register forms to the office of the chief of police of the municipality in which the purchaser resides, or to the office of the captain of the precinct of the municipality in which the purchaser resides, and to the superintendent…..
e. Applications. Applications for permits to purchase a handgun and for firearms purchaser identification cards shall be in the form prescribed by the superintendent and shall set forth the name, residence, place of business, age, date of birth, occupation, sex and physical description, including distinguishing physical characteristics, if any, of the applicant, and shall state whether the applicant is a citizen, whether he is an alcoholic, habitual drunkard, drug dependent person as defined in section 2 of P.L.1970, c.226 (C.24:21-2), whether he has ever been confined or committed to a mental institution or hospital for treatment or observation of a mental or psychiatric condition on a temporary, interim or permanent basis, giving the name and location of the institution or hospital and the dates of confinement or commitment, whether he has been attended, treated or observed by any doctor or psychiatrist or at any hospital or mental institution on an inpatient or outpatient basis for any mental or psychiatric condition, giving the name and location of the doctor, psychiatrist, hospital or institution and the dates of the occurrence, whether he presently or ever has been a member of any organization which advocates or approves the commission of acts of force and violence to overthrow the Government of the United States or of this State, or which seeks to deny others their rights under the Constitution of either the United States or the State of New Jersey, whether he has ever been convicted of a crime or disorderly persons offense, whether the person is subject to a restraining order issued pursuant to the “Prevention of Domestic Violence Act of 1991,” P.L.1991, c.261 (C.2C:25-17 et seq.) prohibiting the person from possessing any firearm, whether the person is subject to a protective order…. For the purpose of complying with this subsection, the applicant shall waive any statutory or other right of confidentiality relating to institutional confinement. The application shall be signed by the applicant and shall contain as references the names and addresses of two reputable citizens personally acquainted with him….
i. Restriction on number of firearms person may purchase. Only one handgun shall be purchased or delivered on each permit and no more than one handgun shall be purchased within any 30-day period, but this limitation shall not apply to:
(1) a federal, State, or local law enforcement officer or agency purchasing handguns for use by officers in the actual performance of their law enforcement duties….
k. Sawed-off shotguns. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the purchase or possession of any sawed-off shotgun.
Although New Jersey was a Republican bastion in past elections, the state government recently has turned solide blue, with Democrats as Governor (Phil Murphy) and Lieutenant Governor (Sheila Oliver), Democrats in majority control of both houses of the State Legislature (Senate, 26–14; Assembly, 54–26), a 10–2 split of the state’s twelve seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, and both U.S. Senate seats (Bob Menendez, Cory Booker).
See also “Virginians form sanctuaries and militias against governor & state legislature gun grab”
~Eowyn