PRINTER'S NO. 3370
No. 2481 Session of 1998
INTRODUCED BY EVANS, M. COHEN, JOSEPHS, HARHAI, CURRY, RAMOS,
JAMES, MANDERINO, YOUNGBLOOD, MICHLOVIC, CARN AND ROONEY,
APRIL 6, 1998
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, APRIL 6, 1998
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania
2 Consolidated Statutes, providing for a limit on handgun
3 purchases and sales; and creating the Violence Prevention
4 Fund.
5 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
6 hereby enacts as follows:
7 Section 1. Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
8 Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:
9 § 6111.6. Limit on handgun purchases.
10 (a) Purchase of handgun.--No person may purchase more than
11 one handgun in this Commonwealth within any 30-day period.
12 (b) Sale of handgun.--No person may sell or cause to be sold
13 to a person in this Commonwealth more than one handgun within
14 any 30-day period.
15 (c) Exceptions.--This section shall not apply to purchases
16 by or sales to the following:
17 (1) A licensed firearm dealer.
18 (2) A licensed firearm collector.
1 (3) A law enforcement agency or an agency authorized to
2 perform law enforcement duties.
3 (4) State and local correctional facilities.
4 (5) A private security company licensed to do business
5 within this Commonwealth.
6 (6) A purchaser or seller of antique firearms.
7 (7) A person whose handgun is stolen or irretrievably
8 lost if:
9 (i) the person provides the seller with a copy of
10 the official police report of the lost or stolen handgun,
11 or a summary thereof on a form provided by the
12 Pennsylvania State Police;
13 (ii) the official police report or summary thereof
14 contains the name and address of the handgun owner, the
15 description of the handgun, the location of the loss or
16 theft, the date of the loss or theft and the date the
17 loss or theft was reported to the law enforcement agency;
18 and
19 (iii) the date of the loss or theft as reflected on
20 the official police report or summary thereof occurred
21 within 30 days of the person's attempt to replace the
22 handgun.
23 The seller shall attach a copy of the official police report
24 or summary thereof to the original sales receipt or other
25 document evidencing the original sale and retain it for the
26 period prescribed by the Pennsylvania State Police.
27 (d) Penalty.--A person who violates subsection (a) or (b):
28 (1) For a first offense, commits a summary offense and
29 shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of $300
30 per handgun purchased in violation of this section.
19980H2481B3370 - 2 -
1 (2) For a second offense, commits a summary offense and
2 shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of $1,000
3 per handgun purchased in violation of this section or to
4 imprisonment for not more than 90 days, or both.
5 (3) For a third or subsequent offense, commits a felony
6 of the third degree.
7 (e) Disposition of fines collected.--The court imposing and
8 collecting a fine under subsection (d) shall transfer the fines
9 thus collected to the State Treasurer for deposit in the
10 Violence Prevention Fund under subsection (f).
11 (f) Violence Prevention Fund.--There is hereby created in
12 the General Fund a nonlapsing restricted receipt account to be
13 known as the Violence Prevention Fund. Moneys in the fund are
14 hereby appropriated to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and
15 Delinquency solely for purposes of violence prevention and youth
16 violence prevention, including, but not limited to, youth
17 education and activities designed to prevent violence and grants
18 to law enforcement agencies for equipment and training designed
19 to prevent gun-related injuries.
20 (g) Notice.--A seller shall notify each prospective
21 purchaser that the purchase of more than one handgun in a 30-day
22 period is prohibited under this section and of the applicable
23 penalties.
24 (h) Handgun purchase history check.--In addition to any
25 other duty prescribed by this section, a seller of a handgun
26 shall request the Pennsylvania State Police to conduct a handgun
27 purchase history check to investigate whether the prospective
28 handgun purchaser is in compliance with this section. A handgun
29 purchase history check shall be conducted in accordance with the
30 procedures governing other background checks under this
19980H2481B3370 - 3 -
1 subchapter. A handgun purchase history shall be conducted at the
2 same time any criminal history, juvenile delinquency or mental
3 health records check is required for a firearm purchase under
4 this subchapter. Information related to a handgun purchase
5 provided to the Pennsylvania State Police by a seller may be
6 retained by the Pennsylvania State Police as necessary to
7 monitor compliance with this section.
8 (i) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following
9 words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
10 subsection:
11 "Handgun." Either of the following:
12 (1) A firearm which has a short stock and is designed to
13 be held and fired by the use of a single hand.
14 (2) Any combination of parts from which a firearm
15 described under paragraph (1) can be assembled.
16 "Purchase." The term does not include the exchange or
17 replacement of a handgun by a seller for a handgun purchased
18 from the seller by the same person seeking the exchange or
19 replacement within the 30-day period immediately preceding the
20 date of exchange or replacement.
21 Section 2. Sections 6120 and 6126(b) of Title 18 are amended
22 to read:
23 § 6120. Limitation on municipal regulation of firearms and
24 ammunition.
25 (a) General rule.--No county, municipality or township,
26 except a city of the first class, may in any manner regulate the
27 lawful ownership, possession, transfer or transportation of
28 firearms, ammunition or ammunition components when carried or
29 transported for purposes not prohibited by the laws of this
30 Commonwealth.
19980H2481B3370 - 4 -
1 (b) Definition.--For the purposes of this section, the term
2 "firearms" has the meaning given in section 5515 (relating to
3 prohibiting of paramilitary training) but shall not include "air
4 rifles" as defined in section 6304 (relating to sale and use of
5 air rifles).
6 § 6126. Firearms Background Check Advisory Committee.
7 * * *
8 (b) Duties.--To facilitate compliance with this chapter and
9 the intent thereof, the Firearms Background Check Advisory
10 Committee shall, as follows:
11 (1) Review the operations and procedures of the
12 Pennsylvania State Police relating to the implementation and
13 administration of the criminal history, juvenile delinquency
14 [and], mental health records and handgun purchase history
15 background checks.
16 (2) Advise the Pennsylvania State Police relating to the
17 development and maintenance of the instantaneous records
18 check system.
19 (3) Provide annual reports to the Governor and the
20 General Assembly on the advisory committee's findings and
21 recommendations, including discussions concerning conformance
22 with the preamble of the act of June 13, 1995 (1st Sp.Sess.,
23 P.L.1024, No.17), entitled, "An act amending Titles 18
24 (Crimes and Offenses) and 42 (Judiciary and Judicial
25 Procedure) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, further
26 providing for the possession of firearms; establishing a
27 selected Statewide juvenile offender registry; and making an
28 appropriation."
29 * * *
30 Section 3. The provisions of this act are severable. If any
19980H2481B3370 - 5 -
1 provision of this act or its application to any person or
2 circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect
3 other provisions or applications of this act which can be given
4 effect without the invalid provision or application.
5 Section 4. All acts and parts of acts are repealed insofar
6 as they are inconsistent with this act.
7 Section 5. This act shall take effect as follows:
8 (1) The amendment or addition of 18 Pa.C.S. §§ 6111.6
9 and 6126 shall take effect 30 days after publication in the
10 Pennsylvania Bulletin of a notice by the Pennsylvania State
11 Police that the Instantaneous Criminal History Records Check
12 System has been established.
13 (2) The remainder of this act shall take effect
14 immediately.
D1L18BIL/19980H2481B3370 - 6 -