AB 2497: Firearms: school gun violence prevention.

(1)Existing sales and use tax laws impose taxes on retailers measured by the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail in this state, or on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a retailer for storage, use, or other consumption in this state.

This bill would impose a tax upon retailers for the privilege of selling firearms and ammunition, as defined, at a rate of ___, of the gross receipts of any retailer from the sale of firearms and ammunition sold in this state on or after January 1, 2019. It would also impose a comparable excise tax on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of firearms and ammunition purchased from a retailer for the storage, use, or other consumption in this state, as provided. The taxes would be collected pursuant to the Fee Collection Procedures Law. This bill would require that revenues collected from the sales of firearms be deposited in the School Gun Violence Protection Fund, which the bill would create. The moneys in that fund would be continuously appropriated to the Department of Justice to provide grants to schools to fund the placement of police officers on high school campuses. This bill would also require that revenues collected from the sales of ammunition be deposited in the School Gun Violence Prevention Fund, which the bill would create. The moneys in that fund would be continuously appropriated to the Department of Justice to fund the placement of counselors required by this bill on middle school and junior high school campuses.

(2)Existing law requires a person who manufactures or assembles a firearm to first apply to the department for a unique serial number or other identifying mark, as provided. A violation of this provision is a misdemeanor.

This bill would prohibit a person from violating that provision with the intent to sell the manufactured or assembled firearm. A violation of that prohibition would be punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony, as specified. The bill would also make the instrumentalities and proceeds of that offense subject to forfeiture and require the proceeds of any forfeiture to be deposited into the School Gun Violence Protection Fund.

(3)Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district to establish a security department under the supervision of a chief of security as designated by, and under the direction of, the superintendent of the school district. Existing law also authorizes the governing board of a school district to establish a school police department under the supervision of a school chief of police and to employ peace officers.

This bill would authorize a school, defined to include a school of a school district or county office of education or a charter school, maintaining grades 9 to 12, inclusive, to apply to the Department of Justice for a grant from the School Gun Violence Protection Fund to contract with, employ, or have assigned to the school a school resource officer, as defined, to be on campus during school hours and during sanctioned school events that are after school hours.

(4)Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district to provide for a comprehensive educational counseling program for all pupils enrolled in the school district and defines educational counseling for purposes of this provision to mean specialized services provided by a school counselor, as specified, who is assigned specific times to directly counsel pupils.

This bill would require each school, defined to include a school of a school district or county office of education or a charter school, maintaining grades 6 to 8, inclusive, or grades 7 and 8 to have a school counselor onsite during school hours when children are present with the primary responsibility of detecting and reporting the early warning signs of threats of violence to the school or its pupils. present. The bill would also authorize a school to apply to the Department of Justice to obtain funding for this counselor from the School Gun Violence Prevention Fund.

(5)The Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act requires a mandated reporter, as defined, to make a report to a specified agency whenever the mandated reporter, in his or her professional capacity or within the scope of his or her employment, has knowledge of or observes a child whom the mandated reporter knows or reasonably suspects has been the victim of child abuse or neglect. Under existing law, failure to make this report is a crime.

This bill would require a mandated reporter, defined to include certain school employees and affiliates, including, among others, school counselors teachers and school resource officers, to report whenever the mandated reporter, in his or her professional capacity or within the scope of his or her employment, has knowledge of or observes any threat or perceived threat by a pupil to use a firearm or any other means of force to inflict mass casualties at a school during school hours or after school hours to the local law enforcement agency and to the Department of Justice. The bill would define school for purposes of this provision to include a school of a school district or county office of education or a charter school maintaining kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive. The bill would require the local law enforcement agency and department to keep a record of threats or perceived threats reported to it. The bill would provide that a mandated reporter who fails to report a threat or perceived threat as required by the bill is guilty of a misdemeanor. The bill would authorize the department, as a result of receiving a report of a threat or perceived threat, to flag an involved individual in a firearms registry that notifies the department if the individual tries to purchase a firearm.

This bill makes other technical, nonsubstantive, and conforming changes.

(6)This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIII A of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of ²/₃ of the membership of each house of the Legislature.

(7)Because this bill would expand the scope of the Fee Collection Procedures Law, the violation of which is a crime, and would create new crimes for specified retailer misconduct, for the failure of a mandated reporter to report a threat, and for the manufacture or assembly of an unmarked firearm with the intent to sell, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Additionally, by imposing new requirements on schools of school districts and county offices of education and charter schools, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.