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| THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA |
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| HOUSE BILL |
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| INTRODUCED BY METCALFE, BROOKS, CUTLER, DALEY, GINGRICH, HESS, METZGAR, MILLARD, MULLERY, PYLE, ROAE AND TALLMAN, MAY 9, 2012 |
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| REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, MAY 9, 2012 |
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| AN ACT |
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1 | Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania |
2 | Consolidated Statutes, providing for the offense of unlawful |
3 | firearm records; and prescribing a penalty. |
4 | The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania |
5 | hereby enacts as follows: |
6 | Section 1. Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated |
7 | Statutes is amended by adding a section to read: |
8 | § 6143. Unlawful firearm records. |
9 | (a) Prohibition.--Except as otherwise provided under |
10 | subsection (b), no State governmental agency or political |
11 | subdivision or official, agent or employee thereof or any other |
12 | person, public or private, may knowingly and willfully keep or |
13 | cause to be kept any list, database, record or registry of |
14 | privately owned firearms or any list, database, record or |
15 | registry of the owners of those firearms. |
16 | (b) Exceptions.--Subsection (a) shall not apply to any of |
17 | the following: |
18 | (1) Records of firearms that have been used in |
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1 | committing a crime. |
2 | (2) Records relating to a person who has been convicted |
3 | of a crime. |
4 | (3) Records of firearms that have been reported stolen. |
5 | These records may be retained for a period not in excess of |
6 | ten days after such firearms are recovered and any criminal |
7 | prosecution related to the stolen firearms has ended, |
8 | including any period during which an appeal may be filed. |
9 | Official documentation recording the theft of a recovered |
10 | weapon may be maintained no longer than the balance of the |
11 | year entered plus two years. |
12 | (4) Firearm records that are required to be retained by |
13 | firearms dealers or manufacturers under Federal or State law, |
14 | including copies of such records transmitted to law |
15 | enforcement agencies, provided that no State governmental |
16 | agency or political subdivision or official, agent or |
17 | employee thereof or any other person, private or public, may |
18 | accumulate, compile, computerize or otherwise collect or |
19 | convert such written records into any form of list, database |
20 | or registry for any purpose. |
21 | (5) Records kept by the Pennsylvania State Police to the |
22 | extent required by Federal law and a log of dates of requests |
23 | for criminal history record checks, unique approval and |
24 | nonapproval numbers, license identification numbers and |
25 | transaction numbers corresponding to such dates. |
26 | (6) Records of an insurer that, as a condition to |
27 | providing insurance against theft or loss of a firearm, |
28 | identify such firearm, provided that the records are not |
29 | sold, commingled with records relating to other firearms or |
30 | transferred to any person or entity other than the insured |
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1 | and that the insurer does not keep a record of the firearm, |
2 | unless part of an ongoing claim, more than 60 days after |
3 | either the policy of insurance expires or notification by the |
4 | insured that the insured is no longer the owner of the |
5 | firearm. |
6 | (7) Lists of customers of a firearms dealer retained by |
7 | the dealer, provided that the lists do not disclose the |
8 | particular firearms purchased, and lists or any parts thereof |
9 | are not sold, commingled with records relating to other |
10 | firearms or transferred to any other person or entity. |
11 | (8) Sales receipts retained by the seller of firearms or |
12 | by a person providing credit for the purchase, provided that |
13 | the receipts do not serve as or are used for the creation of |
14 | a database for registration of firearms. |
15 | (9) Personal records of firearms maintained by the owner |
16 | of the firearms or at the request of the owner of the |
17 | firearms. |
18 | (10) Records maintained by a business or person that |
19 | stores or acts as the selling agent of firearms on behalf of |
20 | the lawful owner of the firearms. |
21 | (11) Membership lists of organizations comprised of |
22 | owners of firearms. |
23 | (12) Records maintained by an employer or contracting |
24 | entity of the firearms owned or used by its officers, |
25 | employees or agents, if the firearms are used in the course |
26 | of business performed on behalf of the employer or |
27 | contracting entity. |
28 | (13) Records of firearms involved in criminal |
29 | investigations, criminal prosecutions, criminal appeals and |
30 | postconviction motions, civil proceedings relating to the |
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1 | ownership, surrender, seizure or safekeeping of firearms, |
2 | including protection orders and sheriff executions, and |
3 | voluntary surrender by the owner or custodian of the firearm |
4 | for safekeeping or otherwise. |
5 | (14) Paper documents relating to firearms involved in |
6 | criminal cases, criminal investigations and criminal |
7 | prosecutions, civil proceedings relating to the ownership, |
8 | surrender, seizure or safekeeping of firearms, including |
9 | protection orders and sheriff executions, and voluntary |
10 | surrender by the owner or custodian of the firearm for |
11 | safekeeping or otherwise. |
12 | (15) Noncriminal records relating to the receipt, |
13 | storage or return of firearms, including, but not limited to, |
14 | records relating to firearms impounded or surrendered for |
15 | storage or safekeeping, receipts proving that a firearm was |
16 | returned to its lawful owner and supporting records of |
17 | identification and proof of ownership, or records relating to |
18 | firearms impounded pursuant to sheriff execution or court |
19 | orders, provided that the records are not compiled, sorted or |
20 | otherwise arranged into any lists, indexes or registries of |
21 | firearms or owners of firearms. |
22 | (16) Records required to be maintained and reported by |
23 | eligible organizations licensed under the act of December 19, |
24 | 1988 (P.L.1262, No.156), known as the Local Option Small |
25 | Games of Chance Act, provided that the records are not |
26 | compiled, sorted or otherwise arranged into any lists, |
27 | indexes or registries of firearms or owners of firearms. |
28 | (c) Penalties.--A person who violates this section commits a |
29 | felony of the third degree. |
30 | (d) No expenditure of State funds to defend.-- |
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1 | (1) Except as otherwise provided under paragraph (2) and |
2 | the sixth amendment to the Constitution of the United States, |
3 | no public funds shall be used to defend the unlawful conduct |
4 | of any person charged with a violation of this section, |
5 | unless the charges against the person are dismissed or the |
6 | person is determined to be not guilty at trial. |
7 | (2) Public funds may be expended to provide the services |
8 | of a public defender or court-appointed attorney. |
9 | (e) Fines.-- |
10 | (1) The governmental entity, or the designee of such |
11 | governmental entity, in whose service or employ a list, |
12 | record or registry was compiled in violation of this section |
13 | may be assessed a fine of not more than $5,000,000, if the |
14 | court determines that the evidence shows that the list, |
15 | database, record or registry was compiled or maintained with |
16 | the knowledge or complicity of the management of the |
17 | governmental entity. |
18 | (2) The Attorney General may bring a civil cause of |
19 | action to enforce the fines assessed under this subsection. |
20 | (f) Prosecution.--The district attorney in the appropriate |
21 | jurisdiction shall investigate complaints of criminal violations |
22 | of this section and, where evidence indicates a violation may |
23 | have occurred, shall prosecute violators. |
24 | (g) Construction.--This section shall be construed to |
25 | effectuate its remedial and deterrent purposes. This section may |
26 | not be construed to grant any substantive, procedural privacy |
27 | right or civil claim to any criminal defendant, and a violation |
28 | of this section may not be grounds for the suppression of |
29 | evidence in any criminal case. |
30 | (h) Destruction of existing records.--A list, database, |
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1 | record or registry of firearms maintained or under construction |
2 | on the effective date of this section shall be destroyed, unless |
3 | prohibited by law, within 60 days after the effective date of |
4 | this section. After that 60-day time period, the failure to |
5 | destroy such list, database, record or registry may result in |
6 | prosecution under this section. |
7 | (i) Confidentiality.--Information retained in compliance |
8 | with subsection (b)(3), (4), (5), (12), (13), (14) and (15) |
9 | shall not be subject to public access under the act of February |
10 | 14, 2008 (P.L.6, No.3), known as the Right-to-Know Law. |
11 | (j) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following |
12 | words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this |
13 | subsection: |
14 | "Firearm." Any weapon which is designed to or may readily be |
15 | converted to expel any projectile by the action of an explosive |
16 | or the frame or receiver of such weapon. |
17 | Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days. |
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