Governor Phil Murphy is renewing his call on legislators to take action and pass a comprehensive gun safety legislative package that was initially proposed by the governor in April 2021.
In December 2021, the Governor was joined by Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin in Metuchen to urge the passage of the majority of these gun safety bills. If passed by the Senate and Assembly and signed into law, the bill package would be the third wide-ranging gun safety package signed by the Governor since taking office.
The bill package being pushed by Murphy includes:
- Requiring Firearm Safety Training: A-993 (Reynolds-Jackson) would require completion of a firearm safety course to receive a permit to purchase a gun or receive a firearm ID card.
- Mandating Safe Storage of Firearms: Gun owners would be required to store guns in a lockbox or gun safe. (For reference: A-2215 (Greenwald), the “New Jersey Safe Storage of Firearms Act”)
- Banning .50 Caliber Firearms: S-1416 (Gill) would revise the definition of “destructive device” under New Jersey law so that it includes weapons of .50 caliber or greater.
- Closing Loophole for Importing Out-of-State Firearms: A-1179/S-1204 (Jasey/Cryan) would require firearm owners who move to New Jersey to obtain a firearm purchaser identification card (FPIC) and register their firearms within 60 days of residing in this State.
- Raising Minimum Age to Purchase Long Guns to 21: A-509/S-504 (Freiman/Cryan) would raise from 18 to 21 the age at which a person is eligible to receive a firearms purchaser identification card used to purchase shotguns and rifles.
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Giving Law Enforcement the Tools to Address Gun Violence
- Establishing Electronic Ammunition Sales Recordkeeping: A-1302 (Greenwald) would require manufacturers or dealers of handgun ammunition to keep a detailed electronic record of ammunition sales, and report ammunition sales to the State Police.
- Promoting Microstamping Technology: S-1462/A-2216 (Codey/Greenwald) would require within a year that firearm manufacturers incorporate microstamping technology into new handguns sold in New Jersey, providing law enforcement with a tool to quickly link firearm cartridge casings found at the scene of a crime to a specific firearm, without having to recover the firearm itself.
Additional Action
- Holding the Gun Industry Accountable: In New Jersey, almost 80% of guns used in crimes are originally purchased outside of the state. However, the gun industry has failed to take any steps to stem the flow of guns to the illegal market through gun shows, flea markets, straw purchasers, and theft. The Governor proposes amending the state’s public nuisance laws to prohibit the gun industry from endangering the safety or health of the public through its sale, manufacturing, importing, or marketing of guns. (For reference: A-1765/S-1893 (McKeon/Ruiz).
“The bills that I introduced one year ago are basic measures that will keep guns out of the wrong hands, help law enforcement apprehend the perpetrators of gun violence, and hold the gun industry accountable for its deceptive and dangerous practices,” said Governor Murphy. “I hope to work with my Legislative partners to continue making New Jersey a national leader in gun safety and prevent the meaningless violence and loss of life that results from the gun violence epidemic.”