SENATE BILL 268

52nd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2015

INTRODUCED BY

Craig W. Brandt

 

 

 

 

 

AN ACT

RELATING TO LAW ENFORCEMENT; FOR CONCEALED CARRY GUN LICENSES, CHANGING THE LICENSE PERIOD TO FIVE YEARS; REMOVING CALIBER AND CATEGORY AND TWO-HOUR REFRESHER COURSE PROVISIONS; ADDING MILITARY SERVICE PERSONS' EXEMPTIONS FROM FEE AND TRAINING COURSE REQUIREMENTS; EXEMPTING LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS FROM TRAINING COURSE REQUIREMENTS; REQUIRING BACKGROUND CHECKS FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND MILITARY SERVICE PERSONS.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. Section 29-19-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2003, Chapter 255, Section 2) is amended to read:

     "29-19-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Concealed Handgun Carry Act:

          A. "applicant" means a person seeking a license to carry a concealed handgun;

          [B. "caliber" means the diameter of the bore of a handgun;

          C. "category" means whether a handgun is semiautomatic or not semiautomatic;

          D.] B. "concealed handgun" means a loaded handgun that is not visible to the ordinary observations of a reasonable person;

          [E.] C. "department" means the department of public safety;

          [F.] D. "handgun" means a firearm that will, is designed to or may readily be converted to expel a projectile by the action of an explosion and the barrel length of which, not including a revolving, detachable or magazine breech, does not exceed twelve inches; and

          [G.] E. "licensee" means a person holding a valid concealed handgun license issued to [him] the person by the department."

     SECTION 2. Section 29-19-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2003, Chapter 255, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:

     "29-19-3. DATE OF LICENSURE--PERIOD OF LICENSURE.--Effective January 1, 2004, the department is authorized to issue concealed handgun licenses to qualified applicants. Original and renewed concealed handgun licenses shall be valid for a period of [four] five years from the date of issuance, unless the license is suspended or revoked."

     SECTION 3. Section 29-19-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2003, Chapter 255, Section 4, as amended) is amended to read:

     "29-19-4. APPLICANT QUALIFICATIONS.--

          A. The department shall issue a concealed handgun license to an applicant who:

(1) is a citizen of the United States;

                (2) is a resident of New Mexico or is a member of the armed forces whose permanent duty station is located in New Mexico or is a dependent of such a member;

                (3) is twenty-one years of age or older;

(4) is not a fugitive from justice;

                (5) has not been convicted of a felony in New Mexico or any other state or pursuant to the laws of the United States or any other jurisdiction;

                (6) is not currently under indictment for a felony criminal offense in New Mexico or any other state or pursuant to the laws of the United States or any other jurisdiction;

                (7) is not otherwise prohibited by federal law or the law of any other jurisdiction from purchasing or possessing a firearm;

                (8) has not been adjudicated mentally incompetent or committed to a mental institution;

                (9) is not addicted to alcohol or controlled substances; and

                (10) has satisfactorily completed a firearms training course approved by the department [for the category and the largest caliber of handgun that the applicant wants to be licensed to carry as a concealed handgun].

          B. The department shall deny a concealed handgun license to an applicant who has:

                (1) received a conditional discharge, a diversion or a deferment or has been convicted of, pled guilty to or entered a plea of nolo contendere to a misdemeanor offense involving a crime of violence within ten years immediately preceding the application;

                (2) been convicted of a misdemeanor offense involving driving while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or drugs within five years immediately preceding the application for a concealed handgun license;

                (3) been convicted of a misdemeanor offense involving the possession or abuse of a controlled substance within ten years immediately preceding the application; or

                (4) been convicted of a misdemeanor offense involving assault, battery or battery against a household member.

          C. Firearms training course instructors who are approved by the department shall not be required to complete a firearms training course pursuant to Paragraph (10) of Subsection A of this section."

     SECTION 4. Section 29-19-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2003, Chapter 255, Section 6, as amended) is amended to read:

     "29-19-6. [APPEAL] LICENSE ISSUANCE--CONFIDENTIALITY--LICENSE RENEWAL--REFRESHER FIREARMS TRAINING COURSE--SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF LICENSE.--

          A. Pursuant to rules adopted by the department, the department, within thirty days after receiving a completed application for a concealed handgun license and the results of a national criminal background check on the applicant, shall:

                (1) issue a concealed handgun license to an applicant; or

                (2) deny the application on the grounds that the applicant failed to qualify for a concealed handgun license pursuant to the provisions of the Concealed Handgun Carry Act.

          B. Information relating to an applicant or to a licensee received by the department or any other law enforcement agency is confidential and exempt from public disclosure unless an order to disclose information is issued by a court of competent jurisdiction. The information shall be made available by the department to a state or local law enforcement agency upon request by the agency.

          C. A concealed handgun license issued by the department shall include:

                (1) [a color photograph] two current photographs, in color, of the licensee;

                (2) the licensee's name, address and date

of birth; and

                (3) the expiration date of the concealed handgun license [and

                (4) the category and the largest caliber of handgun that the licensee is licensed to carry, with a statement that the licensee is licensed to carry smaller caliber handguns but shall carry only one concealed handgun at any given time].

          D. A licensee shall notify the department within thirty days regarding a change of the licensee's name or permanent address. A licensee shall notify the department within ten days if the licensee's concealed handgun license is lost, stolen or destroyed.

          E. If a concealed handgun license is lost, stolen or destroyed, the license is invalid and the licensee may obtain a duplicate license by furnishing the department a notarized statement that the original license was lost, stolen or destroyed and by paying a reasonable fee. If the license is lost or stolen, the licensee shall file a police report with a local law enforcement agency and include the police case number in the notarized statement required pursuant to this subsection.

          F. A licensee may renew a concealed handgun license by submitting to the department:

                (1) a completed renewal form, under penalty of perjury, designed and provided by the department;

                (2) a payment of a seventy-five-dollar ($75.00) renewal fee; and

                (3) a certificate of completion of a four-hour refresher firearms training course approved by the department.           G. The department shall conduct a national criminal records check of a licensee seeking to renew a license. A concealed handgun license shall not be renewed more than sixty days after it has expired. A licensee who fails to renew a concealed handgun license within sixty days after it has expired may apply for a new concealed handgun license pursuant to the provisions of [the Concealed Handgun Carry Act] Section 29-19-4 NMSA 1978.

          [H. A licensee shall complete a two-hour refresher firearms training course two years after the issuance of an original or renewed license. The refresher course shall be approved by the department and shall be taken twenty-two to twenty-six months after the issuance of an original or renewed license. A certificate of completion shall be submitted to the department no later than thirty days after completion of the course.

          I.] H. The department shall suspend or revoke a concealed handgun license if:

                (1) the licensee provided the department with false information on the application form or renewal form for a concealed handgun license;

                (2) the licensee did not satisfy the criteria for issuance of a concealed handgun license at the time the license was issued; or

                (3) subsequent to receiving a concealed handgun license, the licensee violated a provision of the Concealed Handgun Carry Act."

     SECTION 5. Section 29-19-14 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2005, Chapter 242, Section 7) is amended to read:

     "29-19-14. CURRENT AND RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS.--

          A. An application fee, a renewal fee and a firearms training course are not required for an applicant or licensee who is a [certified] law enforcement officer; [pursuant to the Law Enforcement Training Act.

          B. A retired law enforcement officer is not required to submit an application fee or a renewal fee if:

                (1) the officer was a certified law enforcement officer pursuant to the Law Enforcement Training Act; for at least fifteen years prior to retirement; and

                (2) the retirement is in good standing, as shown by a letter from the agency from which the officer retired.

          C. A retired law enforcement officer who has been retired ten years or less is not required to complete a firearms training course.

          D. A retired law enforcement officer who has been retired for more than ten years shall be required to complete a firearms training course. The officer shall be allowed to attend any local law enforcement agency's firearms qualification course; provided that the officer supplies the officer's own ammunition, handgun, targets and range equipment. A local law enforcement agency shall not be liable under the Tort Claims Act for providing a firearms training course to a retired law enforcement officer pursuant to this subsection]

provided that the law enforcement officer submits with the concealed handgun license application documentation of:

                (1) current employment as a law enforcement officer certified pursuant to the Law Enforcement Training Act; or

                (2) voluntary termination while the law enforcement officer was in good standing from the most recent law enforcement agency at which the law enforcement officer worked.

          B. A law enforcement officer shall submit to the department two full sets of fingerprints and two current photographs, in color. The department shall conduct an appropriate check of available records and shall forward a law enforcement officer's fingerprints to the federal bureau of investigation for a national criminal background check.

          C. The department shall suspend or revoke a law enforcement officer's concealed handgun license if:

                (1) the law enforcement officer provided the department with false information on the application form or renewal form;

                (2) the law enforcement officer did not satisfy the criteria for issuance of a concealed handgun license at the time the license was issued; or

                (3) subsequent to receiving a concealed handgun license, the law enforcement officer violated a provision of the Concealed Handgun Carry Act.

          [E.] D. A [retired] law enforcement officer's concealed handgun license shall have printed on the license "[retired police] law enforcement officer" and shall be valid for a period of five years.

          E. As used in this section, "law enforcement officer" means a person who:

                (1) is currently employed as a law enforcement officer certified pursuant to the Law Enforcement Training Act; or

                (2) has retired from at least fifteen years' employment as a law enforcement officer certified pursuant to the Law Enforcement Training Act and was in good standing at the time of termination of employment as a law enforcement officer."

     SECTION 6. A new section of the Concealed Handgun Carry Act is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] MILITARY SERVICE PERSONS--REQUIREMENTS.--

          A. An application fee, a renewal fee and a firearms training course are not required for an applicant or licensee who is a military service person; provided that the military service person submits with the concealed handgun license application documentation of:

                (1) current military service with the United States armed forces; or

                (2) honorable discharge from the United States armed forces as indicated on a United States department of defense form 214.

          B. A military service person shall submit to the department two full sets of fingerprints and two current photographs, in color. The department shall conduct an appropriate check of available records and shall forward the military service person's fingerprints to the federal bureau of investigation for a national criminal background check.

          C. The department shall suspend or revoke a military service person's concealed handgun license if:

                (1) the military service person provided the department with false information on the application form or renewal form;

                (2) the military service person did not satisfy the criteria for issuance of a concealed handgun license at the time the license was issued; or

                (3) subsequent to receiving a concealed handgun license, the military service person violated a provision of the Concealed Handgun Carry Act.

          D. A military service person's concealed handgun carry license shall have printed on the license "military service person" and shall be valid for a period of five years.

          E. As used in this section, "military service person" means a person who was accepted into the United States armed forces and:

                (1) is on active duty;

                (2) is on reserve or guard duty; or

                (3) is a veteran or a retiree who received an honorable discharge."

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