Seems like everyone wants some clarification on the California Gun Laws so I typed something up. Please add or tweak it as you wish and lets see if we can make it a sticky and stop this no sales to California crap.

California Firearms Laws

This is meant as a GUIDE only to CA firearms laws

Firearms Transfer Laws

-Long Rifles over 50 years old are considered C&R by the state of California and can be shipped to a C&R licensed individual
-Any Pistols including C&R firearms must be shipped to a FFL 01.
-Any transfers to FFL 03 dealers from either non licensed dealers, FFL 03, or FFL 01 are exempt from the dealer licensing law.
-The dealer listing law mentioned above only applies to FFL 01 to 01 transfer.
-The California Handgun Roster States “no handgun may be manufactured within California, imported into California for sale, lent, given, kept for sale, or offered/exposed for sale unless that handgun model has passed firing, safety, and drop tests and is certified for sale in California by the Department of Justice. Private party transfers, curio/relic handguns, certain single-action revolvers, and pawn/consignment returns are exempt from this requirement.” Please note that these must still go to a FFL 01, even if they may be C&R in other states or over 50 Years old.

Assault Weapons Laws

Assault Weapons by Feature
• A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has the capacity to accept a detachable magazine and any one of the following:
A. A pistol grip that protrudes conspicuously beneath the action of the weapon.
B. A thumbhole stock.
C. A folding or telescoping stock.
D. A grenade launcher or flare launcher.
E. A flash suppressor.
F. A forward pistol grip.
• A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has a fixed magazine with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds.
• A semiautomatic, centerfire rifle that has an overall length of less than 30 inches.

A list of Banned Assault Weapons by name can be found at:
http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/infobuls/kaslist.pdf

Any Questions can be directed to the California Bureau of Firearms at
Phone: (916) 263-4887

I'll add one to the transfer laws: Long guns over 50 years old (C&R) can be transferred FTF between California residents.

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Omnes Veniant

A clarification... Might be wrong, but in-state can't be done between 03's by shipping them?

_________________
Learn from your mistakes and move on with life
SMSgt USAF 1972-1995 Lifetime NRA, DAV, AFA, AFSA Ham Radio N5ECH

Intrastate OR interstate 03 to 03 shipping for 50 year C & R long guns is OK. Handguns must go through an 01 (with DROS, background, 10 day way, etc) even if C & R.

Additionally, a California COE (certificate of exemption-think of it as a state 03) waives the 10 day wait and one per month restriction on handguns. Generally not cost effective at $90 per year unless you are into handgun collecting (consecutive serial numbers, things like that).

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Omnes Veniant

Here's the information that I've put together. It's about as accurate as I can come up with, and includes references to other sites for further details. It is aimed mostly towards out of state dealers, but is also good info for individuals (since there are so many 03 to 03 transactions here). I tried to gear it towards what would be useful on this site, with our emphasis on C&R guns. This would be a good one to sticky in the for sale section, Ed, if the other guys concur. Maybe under the CA post you put there (if you modify the title to say something like CA sales Reference..just please keep the blurb about CA's giving crap to folks who don't want to sell into state. It's a good reminder for us CA gun owners who are strong willed )

-Jason

Edit. Also want to say, that a good dealer to ask questions of would be J&G Sales in Prescott, AZ. They are considered top-notch over here for doing business with California C&R's. They have a pretty good grasp of California gun laws, so might be a good place to ask questions to get the "been there done that" point of view. I don't have any affiliation with them, just that they seem to know all the in's and out's of doing business with CA gun owners

You might want to include this info Jason.

A ".50 BMG rifle" does not include any "antique firearm," nor
any curio or relic as defined in Section 178.11 of Title 27 of the
Code of Federal Regulations.

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"It is important when you haven't got any ammunition to have a butt on your rifle.”
USMC 0311 AT BTN- 2009-
http://www.youtube.com/user/PetleyChase?feature=mhee

We have a California Moderator who will make the final decision. From my standpoint, if a seller see's a link, he probably won't go there. If you break it down by firearm type and C&R status it will be easier to follow, and provide the material.... as well as the link.

_________________
Learn from your mistakes and move on with life
SMSgt USAF 1972-1995 Lifetime NRA, DAV, AFA, AFSA Ham Radio N5ECH

I broke it down by firearm type in my post, and then discuss how to deal with C&R status for that particular firearm type (longarm and handgun). The CFLC and Handgun Roster links are required for dealers selling into CA, and are what I would call "five minute links." That is, you can find your info in five minutes at those links. If a dealer isn't going to take the 5 minutes to register for CFLC program or look up a non-C&R handgun on the roster list, then the dealer's never going to sell into CA anyways. Simple as that

All the info for individuals and C&R guns are out there in the post, and don't require following links to answer questions (see the 2 FAQ's in bold in the post).

Any other links I included in my post is background reference material or links to the Calguns forum.

FYI for any dealers: Calguns is a MUCH better source of information than California Department of Justice. I say this because I've heard many stories of out-of-state dealers calling CA DOJ and getting BAD INFO. Yes, that is what I'm saying: CA DOJ does NOT know California gun laws as well as folks who read and post to Calguns.


BTW on adding info on C&R .50 BMG. First, I believe the .50 BMG cartridge entered service in 1921, so I'd be surprised if any antiques which shoot .50 BMG exist. As for .50 BMG C&R's....it's a C&R so it's exempt. That info would be easy to add.

I also don't think banning "no sales to CA" is a good idea. It is, in the end, a personal choice on the part of the seller. The problem is that it is currently an *uninformed* choice by most folks. Ed, I agree..let's make it an *informed* choice.

BTW I got a small amount of feedback from expert at Calguns, but what I did get was positive so I think the info I have captured above would be good to go.

-Jason

This thread is now WAY off topic. It was started to be a template for California Laws and eventually become a sticky (which means most irrelevant posts will get eventually ozoned).

If you don't have meaningful content regarding California Law, please post it elsewhere. But, Please do not be ANTI-California.

_________________
Learn from your mistakes and move on with life
SMSgt USAF 1972-1995 Lifetime NRA, DAV, AFA, AFSA Ham Radio N5ECH

Enough is enough! Any posts in this thread that do not contribute to the "Sticky" understand California Firearm Laws will be deleted. All vent posts have been moved to another thread.

_________________
Learn from your mistakes and move on with life
SMSgt USAF 1972-1995 Lifetime NRA, DAV, AFA, AFSA Ham Radio N5ECH

Stick this, it is from Empire Arms website. http://64.82.96.51/cal-ffl.htm Good info there.

Special regulations for California C&R FFL's
Summary of California C&R (Class 03) FFL related law, updated March 14th, 2009.

Using your C&R Class 03 FFL you can buy from anyone and receive from out of state by common carrier, in conformity with federal law, any firearm that cannot be readily concealed on the person, i.e. long rifle, that is a federally defined C&R that is at least 50 years old (manufactured on or before 1958) excluding of course machine guns.

It MUST be more than 50 years old. Items dated 1959 or later are NOT C&R in California.

True antiques (rifles & pistols manufactured before January 1st, 1899) are exempt because they are not considered firearms.

NO PISTOL or concealable firearm, regardless of C&R status can be ordered from out of state and shipped in, or sold within the state without going through a Class 01 Dealer FFL.

There is now a limit of 1 pistol per 30 day period even if ordered through a dealer. This rule applies to all pistols, including C&R pistols. There currently (subject to change at any time) is an exception to this limit for holders of both a Class 03 (C&R) FFL and COE (Certificate of Eligibility).

Within California, non dealers, which includes private parties with or without a Class 03 (C&R) FFL license, can sell each other any rifle that cannot be readily concealed on the person that is a federally defined C&R more than 50 years old (except to minors, drug addicts and those with felony or certain misdemeanor criminal records). This is supposed to be on an occasional basis only - a fuzzy concept for which you must check the statutes and case law yourself, but a few a year is probably ok. Just don't make a business of it.

ANY transfer by a Class 01 dealer FFL in California, even if it would be exempt if made between private parties, requires a DROS (Dealer Record of Sale), DROS fee ($20+), background check and 10 day wait. If you have a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) you are supposed to be exempt from needing a background check.

Commencing January 1, 2002, California law requires all firearms sold, transferred, or manufactured in California must include a firearm safety device approved by the Attorney General. Specified transactions (including antique firearms, law enforcement firearms, and transactions involving a prior purchase of an approved safety device or qualifying gun safe) are exempt from this requirement. The DOJ has certified laboratories to test firearms safety devices for compliance with DOJ standards. The DOJ maintains a roster that lists all of the tested safety devices that comply with DOJ standards for sale in this state. Interested parties may request a copy of the roster from the DOJ or access it on the DOJ website HERE (PC § 12088.1).

Any California resident can sell and ship a C&R long rifle to a Class 01 (dealer) or Class 03 (C&R) FFL who resides out of state, subject to the recipients state's laws and the usual federal laws regarding transport. .

It is unclear whether a Class 03 C&R FFL or private party can sell and ship a C&R pistol to an out of state Class 03 C&R FFL (since the handgun will still be REGISTERED to you in California). Should you wish to do this, you should call the DOJ and get their opinion before doing the transaction. So long as the transaction complies with federal firearms laws and the local laws of the receiving Class 03 C&R FFL, it should be ok, but there CAN be exceptions. You should make the determination of legality to your own satisfaction BEFORE attempting the transaction.

A federally defined C&R pistol, regardless of age, can be imported into CA if it is legally purchased out of state by a CA resident with a Class 03 C&R FFL and if physical possession of the piece is taken by the Californian Class 03 C&R FFL outside of CA. It can be imported by the CA Class 03 C&R FFL purchaser only - hand carry it back or UPS it to yourself. Importation of the pistol must be reported within 5 days to the DOJ on their special form BCIA 4100A (NEW! download form 4100A HERE) with a $19 payment per firearm. Buying a C&R Makarov with your Class 03 C&R FFL in Las Vegas or Arizona and bringing it (or shipping it) back to California is OK if you register it within 5 days.

When you receive or download the form BCIA 4100A (http://caag.state.ca.us/firearms/forms/pdf/curioapp.pdf) make copies for the next time you need one. I highly recommend that you do this IN ADVANCE of any purchase (i.e., before you need it).

A CA Class 01 dealer can sell and ship any C&R pistol or rifle to a Class 03 (C&R) FFL who resides out of state, subject to the receiving Class 03's state laws and the usual federal laws regarding transfer and transport. The transfer must be directly to the out of state address that appears on the FFL; if the non-resident wants to pick it up in CA, all usual rules apply (DROS & 10 day waiting period). You may have to have the dealer call the DOJ to ok this; not all dealers are on top of the C&R regulations.

California law requires that a Curio & Relic firearm must be at least 50 years old to be exempt from the dealer transfer requirements. Many federally defined C&R models have manufacturing dates that span the 50 year mark, for example, M1 Garands, etc., and it's perfectly legitimate to buy one you can prove was made in 1958 or before, but illegal to buy one made in 1959 except through a Class 01 FFL dealer in California. Since there is no way to tell the difference with many of these (often the barrel is stamped with a date but the receiver isn't) a dealer SHOULD NOT ship a rifle to a California Class 03 C&R FFL holder that cannot be readily and absolutely dated 1958 or before.

The new "ASSAULT WEAPONS" laws include some C&R, depending on configuration. The DOJ has not issued a weapon specific list (and probably will not), so each semi-auto C&R must be evaluated against the statute. You can find the statue and proposed regulations at the CA DOJ firearms website http://caag.state.ca.us/firearms/forms/ You must look at BOTH the statute and the regulations. Other than antiques, defined as manufactured prior to January 1, 1899, which are specifically exempt, ANY semi-auto C&R rifle or pistol is potentially an "assault weapon." An "assault weapon" can NOT be imported, even through a Class 01 (dealer) FFL, except under very restricted (LEO, etc) circumstances. Depending on configuration, "assault weapons" can include M1 carbines, Garands, Mas 49 and 49/56, FN-49, C96 Mauser Broomhandles, Yugoslavian 59/66 SKS's, etc. All semi-auto firearms are suspect; the law is configuration specific, and removal or addition of a single feature can make a firearm legal, or banned.

A ban on magazines with a capacity greater than 10 rounds went into effect January 1, 2000. Magazines (this includes MG links) holding more than 10 rounds can no longer be imported into California or transferred within the state. You can not even loan such a magazine except under strictly limited circumstances. This ban includes many C&R magazines, and it applies to all magazines, even those for bolt action rifles (Ishapore Enfield 12 round mags, for example).

Under California law, the only thing a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) does for Class 03 (C&R) FFL holders is that it lets you skip the waiting period for C&R purchased in state from a dealer, and for now allows the purchase of more than one handgun (modern and C&R) per 30 days. You must have both a Class 03 (C&R) FFL and COE to do this! Even with the COE you still have to do a DROS form and background check and pay the fee each time, usually $20 + dealer mark up. So, unless you absolutely can't wait the 10 days, or need to buy more than one pistol per 30 days, the COE is a $72, plus cost of fingerprinting and annual $17 renewal fee that is probably wasted. It is often difficult to convince dealers about what the COE does.

If you don't have a copy of the CA DOJ's "California Firearms Laws 2006" you should download it in PDF format from: http://caag.state.ca.us/firearms/forms/pdf/Cfl2006.pdf
It is not complete and may be misleading in some areas, but it is a good basic guide that will reference code sections for you, which you can then find posted at the DOJ site. You should bookmark the statute page for reference. There is NO substitute for actually reading and understanding the actual text of the statutes: http://caag.state.ca.us/firearms/dwcl/index.html

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"Senator, don't pee down my back and tell me it's raining"

Some of this is out of date or misleading info. Californians are free to sell out of state as long as the transaction follows applicable federal laws and is legal in the destination state.

The Assault Weapons laws paragraph is entirely junk. I would guess it was posted prior to the CA AWB going into place in ~1999 or so (? About when I got here). Every C&R example they list is actually OK for sale into California with a 10 round or less mag except for maybe the Yugo SKS (easy to look up) and an Argentine FN49 rechambered for 7.62NATO because it uses a 20 round mag (and even then you can pin the mag to accept only 10 rounds).

The magazine paragraph is not entirely correct. Magazine rebuild parts can be sold into the state. For example, I could buy magazine rebuild kits to repair my M1 Carbine 15-round mags. If all the parts needed replacement, then that is a perfectly legal use. So even an M1 Carbine mag with a body stamped with a year of manufacture after the law went into effect is not necessarily illegal. Yes it is a stupid and unenforceable law, we know this already. Even my buddy the local prosecuting attorney knows this is stupid and unenforceable. However, that's a CA resident concern only. From your point of view as an out-of-state seller, the high cap mags sold into the state must be unassembled and sold as repair kits only. Note this rules out completely any high cap mags for firearms made *only* after the high cap mag ban went into effect in 2000 (since there was no way to own a high cap mag for such a firearm pre-2000).

Finally, contacting CA DOJ is a BAD IDEA. Surprisingly (unsurprisingly for us CA gun owners), they know next to nothing about CA gun laws and will give you BAD INFO. Your best source is calguns.net. I cannot stress this enough.

The only other point is that Empire Arms website makes no mention of CFLC.

But everything else looks ok

-Jason

edit: oops, didn't mean to quote the post

Stop posting here for a bit. CalFed one of our California Moderators needs time to digest.

_________________
Learn from your mistakes and move on with life
SMSgt USAF 1972-1995 Lifetime NRA, DAV, AFA, AFSA Ham Radio N5ECH

If I may.........I suggest anyone who has questions concerning firearm related laws contact the CA DOJ, IN ADDITION TO the local law enforcment office, and the CA General Attorney's office so that if one doesn't know then the others possibly will. Get paperwork whenever you can (email, written letters, etc) so that you can prove that you are in the right if you belive something may be questioned by someone at a later date. Calguns is a very good source of info, but nobody there will offer legal assistance if you get bad second-hand info. It may be a hassle to deal with government offices, but at least your getting law info from the law, and not from Johnny Forumposter. Just my .02

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Milsurps, more addictive than cherry flavored crack!!!!
"nanny-nanny boo-boo, stick your head in doo-doo!" part_time

Again, that is simply a bad idea. The people you will talk to at CA DOJ are no more than receptionists. They are a major, well-documented source of BAD advice and FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt). A police officer is simply that..a cop, and not a lawyer. The CA Attorney General is well-known to be anti-gun. You think his office will give you good advice? Calguns *IS* the best, easiest source of information on California gun laws. There are experts on California gun laws posting there (ie California FFL 01's, the people behind the effort to regain gun rights in CA, lawyers, etc.). If you don't trust the experts on the forum there, contact a California FFL dealer who regularly transfers in firearms. If the information you need is such that a lawyer is required to answer specific legal questions or deal with a case, then I'd recommend getting in contact with the CalGuns Foundation (who will put you in contact with real live legal experts .. ie lawyers). Barring that, Calguns is simply the best source for clarifying questions about California gun laws. It *is* the source of the organized effort to regain gun rights in California.

Usually I would agree with you about taking advice over the internet, but not in this case.

-Jason