REPORT TITLE:
Firearms


DESCRIPTION:
Prohibits:  (1) the acquisition, possession, transportation, use,
or sale of firearms by anyone under 21; (2) after 12/31/00, the
importation, sale, acquisition, and transfer of pistols and
revolvers; and (3) the acquisition of more than one firearm
during any 30-day period, with certain exceptions.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.           
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2000                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO FIREARMS.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  While Hawaii has led the nation in protecting
 
 2 its citizens through the regulation of firearms ownership and
 
 3 use, Hawaii's citizens have still suffered from unacceptably high
 
 4 levels of violence, injury, and death from firearms.  Between
 
 5 1988 and 1997, for example, there were five hundred sixty-one
 
 6 firearms-related fatalities in Hawaii (almost five per month),
 
 7 forty-five of whom were children.
 
 8      Moreover, there is no longer any doubt that stronger
 
 9 firearms restrictions directly result in lower rates of firearms-
 
10 related injuries and death.  For example, according to a 1997
 
11 United Nations study, the United States (including Hawaii) has
 
12 weaker firearms regulations, and higher firearms-related
 
13 violence, injuries, and deaths, than all other industrialized
 
14 nations and most developing ones.  By contrast, Japan and the
 
15 United Kingdom, which have longstanding strict regulation of
 
16 firearms and have recently banned private ownership of virtually
 
17 all handguns, have very low rates of firearms-related violence,
 
18 injuries, and death.
 
19      Under these circumstances, the legislature finds that the
 

 
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 1 provisions of this Act represent reasonable restrictions on
 
 2 whatever constitutional rights of citizens of this State to keep
 
 3 and bear arms might exist.  Accordingly, the purpose of this Act
 
 4 is to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the people of
 
 5 this State through the following measures that regulate firearms:
 
 6      (1)  Prohibit the acquisition, possession, transportation,
 
 7           use, or sale of firearms by anyone under twenty-one
 
 8           years of age.  No exceptions are made for hunting or
 
 9           firing ranges, even with adult supervision;
 
10      (2)  Prohibit the importation, sale, acquisition, and
 
11           transfer of pistols and revolvers;
 
12      (3)  Provide that permits to acquire a firearm, rather than
 
13           a pistol or revolver, shall require a separate
 
14           application and permit for each transaction.  This Act
 
15           also repeals language entitling permittees of rifles
 
16           and shotguns to make subsequent purchases of rifles or
 
17           shotguns for a period of one year from the date of
 
18           issue without a separate application and permit for
 
19           each acquisition, subject to disqualification and
 
20           revocation provisions under law.  This Act further
 
21           requires the owner of a firearm to register an
 
22           unregistered firearm prior to July 1, 2001, if
 
23           registration of the firearm was not required at the
 

 
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 1           time the firearm was originally acquired, and sets
 
 2           registration fees according to registration deadlines
 
 3           for owners of unregistered firearms and registered
 
 4           subsequent to December 31, 2000;
 
 5      (4)  Require proof of registration of firearm in order to
 
 6           transfer ammunition; and
 
 7      (5)  Prohibit a person from acquiring more than one firearm
 
 8           during any thirty-day period, except for persons
 
 9           licensed to sell and manufacture firearms.
 
10      SECTION 2.  Chapter 134, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended
 
11 by adding two new sections to be appropriately designated and to
 
12 read as follows:
 
13      "§134-A  Time and quantity limitations on the acquisition of
 
14 firearms.  Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, no person may
 
15 acquire more than one firearm during any thirty-day period except
 
16 persons licensed to sell and manufacture firearms pursuant to
 
17 section 134-31; provided that the exemptions established by
 
18 section 134-11 shall also apply to this section.
 
19      §134-B  Firearms; age prohibition.  (a)  No person in this
 
20 State under twenty-one years of age may acquire, possess,
 
21 transport, or otherwise use any firearm, or sell any firearm to
 
22 any other person.
 
23      (b)  No exceptions shall be permitted to the prohibition in
 

 
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 1 subsection (a)."
 
 2      SECTION 3.  Section 134-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 3 amended by amending subsections (d) and (e) to read as follows:
 
 4      "(d)  The chief of police of the respective counties may
 
 5 issue permits to acquire firearms to citizens of the United
 
 6 States of the age of twenty-one years or more, or duly accredited
 
 7 official representatives of foreign nations, or duly commissioned
 
 8 law enforcement officers of the State who are aliens; provided
 
 9 that any law enforcement officer who is the owner of a firearm
 
10 and who is an alien shall transfer ownership of the firearm
 
11 within forty-eight hours after termination of employment from a
 
12 law enforcement agency.  The chief of police of each county may
 
13 issue permits to aliens of the age of [eighteen] twenty-one years
 
14 or more for use of rifles and shotguns for a period not exceeding
 
15 sixty days, upon a showing that the alien has first procured a
 
16 hunting license under chapter 183D, part II.  The chief of police
 
17 of each county may issue permits to aliens of the age of twenty-
 
18 one years or more for use of firearms for a period not exceeding
 
19 six months, upon a showing that the alien is in training for a
 
20 specific organized sport-shooting contest to be held within the
 
21 permit period.  The attorney general shall adopt rules, pursuant
 
22 to chapter 91, as to what constitutes sufficient evidence that an
 
23 alien is in training for a sport-shooting contest.
 

 
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 1 Notwithstanding any provision of the law to the contrary and upon
 
 2 joint application, the chief of police may issue permits to
 
 3 acquire firearms jointly to spouses who otherwise qualify to
 
 4 obtain permits under this section.
 
 5      (e)  The permit application form shall be signed by the
 
 6 applicant and by the issuing authority.  One copy of the permit
 
 7 shall be retained by the issuing authority as a permanent
 
 8 official record.  Except for sales to dealers licensed under
 
 9 section 134-31, or dealers licensed by the United States
 
10 Department of the Treasury, or law enforcement officers, or where
 
11 a license is granted under section 134-9, or where any firearm is
 
12 registered pursuant to section 134-3(a), no permit shall be
 
13 issued to an applicant earlier than fourteen calendar days after
 
14 the date of the application; provided that a permit shall be
 
15 issued or the application denied before the twentieth day from
 
16 the date of application.  Permits issued [to acquire any pistol
 
17 or revolver] shall be void unless used within ten days after the
 
18 date of issue.  Permits to acquire a [pistol or revolver] firearm
 
19 shall require a separate application and permit for each
 
20 transaction.  [Permits issued to acquire any rifle or shotgun
 
21 shall entitle the permittee to make subsequent purchases of
 
22 rifles or shotguns for a period of one year from the date of
 
23 issue without a separate application and permit for each
 

 
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 1 acquisition, subject to the disqualifications under section 134-7
 
 2 and subject to revocation under section 134-13; provided that if
 
 3 a permittee is arrested for committing a felony or any crime of
 
 4 violence or for the illegal sale of any drug, the permit shall be
 
 5 impounded and shall be surrendered to the issuing authority.]"
 
 6      SECTION 4.  Section 134-2.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 7 amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
 
 8      "(a)  Upon a finding that public safety is not endangered,
 
 9 the chief of police of the appropriate county may issue permits,
 
10 initially valid for a period of one year and renewable annually
 
11 thereafter, for the possession, transportation, or use, with
 
12 blank cartridges, of firearms or explosives solely as props for
 
13 motion picture films or television program production upon a
 
14 showing that good cause exists for the issuance of a permit to
 
15 the applicant and upon sufficient proof of a federal firearms
 
16 license and a state film permit required under section 201-3.  No
 
17 permit shall be issued to a person who is under [twenty]
 
18 twenty-one years of age or who is disqualified under section
 
19 134-7."
 
20      SECTION 5.  Section 134-3, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
21 amended to read as follows:
 
22      "§134-3 Registration, mandatory, exceptions.(a)  Every
 
23 person arriving in the State who brings or by any other manner
 

 
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 1 causes to be brought into the State a firearm of any description,
 
 2 whether usable or unusable, serviceable or unserviceable, modern
 
 3 or antique, shall register the firearm within three days after
 
 4 arrival of the person or of the firearm, whichever arrives later,
 
 5 with the chief of police of the county of the person's place of
 
 6 business or, if there is no place of business, the person's
 
 7 residence or, if there is neither a place of business nor
 
 8 residence, the person's place of sojourn.  A nonresident alien
 
 9 may bring firearms not otherwise prohibited by law into the State
 
10 for a continuous period not to exceed ninety days; provided that
 
11 the person meets the registration requirement of this section and
 
12 the person possesses:
 
13      (1)  A valid Hawaii hunting license procured under chapter
 
14           183D, part II, or a commercial or private shooting
 
15           preserve permit issued pursuant to section 183D-34;
 
16      (2)  A written document indicating the person has been
 
17           invited to the State to shoot on private land; or
 
18      (3)  Written notification from a firing range or target
 
19           shooting business indicating that the person will
 
20           actually engage in target shooting.
 
21 The nonresident alien shall be limited to a nontransferable
 
22 registration of not more than ten firearms for the purpose of the
 
23 above activities.
 

 
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 1      (b)  Every person who acquires a firearm pursuant to section
 
 2 134-2 shall register the firearm in the manner prescribed by this
 
 3 section within five days of acquisition.  If registration of the
 
 4 firearm was not required at the time the firearm was originally
 
 5 acquired, the owner shall register the unregistered firearm prior
 
 6 to July 1, 2001.  For each firearm for which registration was not
 
 7 required at the time the firearm was originally acquired but
 
 8 which is registered on or prior to December 31, 2000, the owner
 
 9 shall pay no fee for registration.  For each firearm for which
 
10 registration was not required at the time the firearm was
 
11 originally acquired but which is registered after December 31,
 
12 2000, the owner shall pay a fee upon registration of $100.  The
 
13 registration shall be on forms prescribed by the attorney
 
14 general, which shall be uniform throughout the State, and shall
 
15 include the following information:  name of the manufacturer and
 
16 importer; model; type of action; caliber or gauge; serial number;
 
17 and source from which receipt was obtained, including the name
 
18 and address of the prior registrant.  If the firearm has no
 
19 serial number, the permit number shall be entered in the space
 
20 provided for the serial number, and the permit number shall be
 
21 engraved upon the receiver portion of the firearm prior to
 
22 registration.  All registration data that would identify the
 
23 individual registering the firearm by name or address shall be
 

 
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 1 confidential and shall not be disclosed to anyone, except as may
 
 2 be required for processing the registration or as may be required
 
 3 by a law enforcement agency for the lawful performance of its
 
 4 duties or as may be required by order of a court.
 
 5      (c)  No person or firearms dealer shall transfer firearm
 
 6 ammunition to another person without first requiring the
 
 7 transferee to produce an accurate copy of the registration
 
 8 document on file with the police department evidencing
 
 9 registration of the firearm for which the transferee wishes to
 
10 obtain ammunition.
 
11      [(c)] (d)  Dealers licensed under section 134-31 or dealers
 
12 licensed by the United States Department of the Treasury shall
 
13 register firearms pursuant to this section on registration forms
 
14 prescribed by the attorney general and shall not be required to
 
15 have the firearms physically inspected by the chief of police at
 
16 the time of registration.
 
17      [(d)] (e)  Registration shall not be required for:
 
18      (1)  Any device that is designed to fire loose black powder
 
19           or that is a firearm manufactured before 1899;
 
20      (2)  Any device not designed to fire or made incapable of
 
21           being readily restored to a firing condition; or
 
22      (3)  All unserviceable firearms and destructive devices
 
23           registered with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and
 

 
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                                     H.B. NO.           
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1           Firearms of the United States Department of the
 
 2           Treasury pursuant to Title 27, Code of Federal
 
 3           Regulations.
 
 4      [(e) No] (f)  Except as provided in subsection (b), no fee
 
 5 shall be charged for the registration."
 
 6      SECTION 6.  Section 134-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 7 amended to read as follows:
 
 8      "§134-4 Transfer, possession of firearms.(a)  No transfer
 
 9 of any rifle having a barrel length of sixteen inches or over or
 
10 any shotgun having a barrel length of eighteen inches or over,
 
11 whether usable or unusable, serviceable or unserviceable, modern
 
12 or antique, registered under prior law or by a prior owner, or
 
13 unregistered shall be made to any person under the age of
 
14 [eighteen] twenty-one years[, except as provided by section
 
15 134-5].
 
16      (b)  No person shall possess any firearm that is owned by
 
17 another, regardless of whether the owner has consented to
 
18 possession of the firearm, without a permit from the chief of
 
19 police of the appropriate county, except as provided in
 
20 subsection (c) and section 134-5.
 
21      (c)  Any lawfully acquired rifle or shotgun may be lent to
 
22 an adult for use within the State for a period not to exceed
 
23 fifteen days without a permit; provided that where the rifle or
 

 
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 1 shotgun is to be used outside of the State, the loan may be for a
 
 2 period not to exceed seventy-five days.
 
 3      (d)  No person shall knowingly lend a firearm to any person
 
 4 who is prohibited from ownership or possession of a firearm under
 
 5 section 134-7.
 
 6      (e)  After July 1, 1992, no person shall bring or cause to
 
 7 be brought into the State an assault pistol.  No assault pistol
 
 8 may be sold or transferred on or after July 1, 1992, to anyone
 
 9 within the State other than to a dealer licensed under section
 
10 134-32 or the chief of police of any county except that any
 
11 person who obtains title by bequest or intestate succession to an
 
12 assault pistol registered within the State shall, within ninety
 
13 days, render the weapon permanently inoperable, sell or transfer
 
14 the weapon to a licensed dealer or the chief of police of any
 
15 county, or remove the weapon from the State.
 
16      (f)  After December 31, 2000, no person shall bring or cause
 
17 to be brought into the State a pistol or revolver.  No pistol or
 
18 revolver may be sold or transferred on or after December 31,
 
19 2000, to anyone within the State other than to a dealer licensed
 
20 under section 134-32 or the chief of police of any county, except
 
21 that any person who obtains title by bequest or intestate
 
22 succession to a pistol or revolver registered within the State
 
23 shall, within ninety days, render the weapon permanently
 

 
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 1 inoperable, sell or transfer the weapon to a licensed dealer or
 
 2 the chief of police of any county, or remove the weapon from the
 
 3 State."
 
 4      SECTION 7.  Section 134-5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
 5 amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
 
 6      "(a)  Any person of the age of [sixteen] twenty-one years[,]
 
 7 or over [or any person under the age of sixteen years while
 
 8 accompanied by an adult,] may carry and use any lawfully acquired
 
 9 rifle or shotgun and suitable ammunition while actually engaged
 
10 in hunting or target shooting or while going to and from the
 
11 place of hunting or target shooting; provided that the person has
 
12 procured a hunting license under chapter 183D, part II.  A
 
13 hunting license shall not be required for persons engaged in
 
14 target shooting."
 
15      SECTION 8.  Section 134-9, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
16 amended to read as follows:
 
17      "§134-9 [Licenses] Permit to acquire pistols and revolvers;
 
18 licenses to carry.(a)  In an exceptional case, when an
 
19 applicant shows reason to fear injury to the applicant's person
 
20 or property, the chief of police of the appropriate county may
 
21 grant a [license] permit to acquire a pistol or revolver, a
 
22 license to carry an unconcealed weapon, or a license to carry a
 
23 concealed weapon to an applicant who is a citizen of the United
 

 
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 1 States of the age of twenty-one years or more or to a duly
 
 2 accredited official representative of a foreign nation of the age
 
 3 of twenty-one years or more.  A license to carry a concealed
 
 4 weapon shall authorize the licensee to carry a pistol or revolver
 
 5 and ammunition therefor concealed on the person within the county
 
 6 where the license is granted.  Where the urgency or the need has
 
 7 been sufficiently indicated, the respective chief of police may
 
 8 grant to an applicant of good moral character who is a citizen of
 
 9 the United States of the age of twenty-one years or more, is
 
10 engaged in the protection of life and property, and is not
 
11 prohibited under section 134-7 from the ownership or possession
 
12 of a firearm, a license to carry a pistol or revolver and
 
13 ammunition therefor unconcealed on the person within the county
 
14 where the license is granted.  Unless renewed, the license shall
 
15 expire one year from the date of issue.
 
16      (b)  The chief of police of each county shall adopt
 
17 procedures to require that any person granted a permit to acquire
 
18 a pistol or revolver, a license to carry an unconcealed weapon,
 
19 or a license to carry a concealed weapon on the person shall:
 
20      (1)  Be qualified to use the firearm in a safe manner;
 
21      (2)  Appear to be a suitable person to be so licensed;
 
22      (3)  Not be prohibited under section 134-7 from the
 
23           ownership or possession of a firearm; and
 

 
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 1      (4)  Not have been adjudged insane or not appear to be
 
 2           mentally deranged.
 
 3      (c)  No person shall acquire a pistol or revolver or carry
 
 4 concealed or unconcealed on the person a pistol or revolver
 
 5 without being permitted or licensed to do so under this section
 
 6 or in compliance with section 134-6.
 
 7      (d)  A fee of $10 shall be charged for each permit or
 
 8 license and shall be deposited in the treasury of the county in
 
 9 which the license is granted."
 
10      SECTION 9.  Section 134-17, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is
 
11 amended by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
 
12      "(c)  Any person who violates section 134-2, 134-4, 134-A,
 
13 134-B, 134-10, 134-15, or 134-16(a) shall be guilty of a
 
14 misdemeanor.  Any person who violates section 134-3(b) shall be
 
15 guilty of a petty misdemeanor and the firearm shall be
 
16 confiscated as contraband and disposed of, if the firearm is not
 
17 registered within five days of the person receiving notice of the
 
18 violation."
 
19      SECTION 10.  In codifying the new sections added to chapter
 
20 134, Hawaii Revised Statutes, by section 2 of this Act, the
 
21 revisor of statutes shall substitute appropriate section numbers
 
22 for letters used in the designation of those new sections.
 
23      SECTION 11.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed.
 

 
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 1 New statutory material is underscored.
 
 2      SECTION 12.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2000.
 
 3 
 
 4                           INTRODUCED BY:  _______________________