S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   2166
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             January 15, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. MANKTELOW, ANGELINO, BRABENEC, DeSTEFANO, HAWLEY,
   SMULLEN,  WALSH,  MILLER -- read once and referred to the Committee on
   Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to  a  license  to  carry  or
   possess a firearm
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 265.00 of the penal law is amended by adding a  new
 subdivision 10-a to read as follows:
   10-A.  "FILING  OFFICER" MEANS THE COUNTY CLERK OF EACH COUNTY, UNLESS
 OTHERWISE SPECIFIED THROUGH RESOLUTION BY THE COUNTY'S LEGISLATIVE BODY.
   § 2. Subdivisions 9, 10, 13 and 14 of section 400.00 of the penal law,
 subdivision 9 as amended by chapter 212 of the laws of 2022, subdivision
 10 as amended by chapter 371 of the laws of 2022, and subdivision 14  as
 amended  by  chapter  429  of  the  laws  of 2023 are amended to read as
 follows:
   9. License: amendment. Elsewhere than in  the  city  of  New  York,  a
 person  licensed to carry or possess a pistol or revolver or to purchase
 or take possession of a semiautomatic rifle may apply  at  any  time  to
 [his  or her licensing] THE FILING officer for amendment of [his or her]
 SUCH OFFICER'S license to include one or more such weapons or to  cancel
 weapons  held  under  license. [If granted, a] A record of the amendment
 describing the weapons involved shall be filed by the [licensing] FILING
 officer in the executive department, division of state  police,  Albany.
 The  superintendent of state police may authorize that such amendment be
 completed and transmitted  to  the  state  police  in  electronic  form.
 Notification  of any change of residence shall be made in writing by any
 licensee within ten days after such change occurs, and a record of  such
 change  shall  be inscribed by such licensee on the reverse side of [his
 or her] SUCH LICENSEE'S license. Elsewhere than in the city of New York,
 and in the counties of Nassau and Suffolk, such  notification  shall  be
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD03648-01-5
              

 A. 2166                             2
 
 made  to the executive department, division of state police, Albany, and
 in the city of New York to the police commissioner of that city, and  in
 the  county  of Nassau to the police commissioner of that county, and in
 the  county of Suffolk to the [licensing] FILING officer of that county,
 who shall, within ten days after such notification shall be received  by
 [him  or  her] THEM, give notice in writing of such change to the execu-
 tive department, division of state police, at Albany.
   10. License: expiration, certification and renewal.  (a)  Any  license
 for  gunsmith  or  dealer  in firearms and, in the city of New York, any
 license to carry or possess a pistol or revolver,  issued  at  any  time
 pursuant  to  this  section  or prior to the first day of July, nineteen
 hundred sixty-three and not limited to expire on an earlier  date  fixed
 in  the license, shall, except as otherwise provided in paragraph (d) of
 this subdivision, expire not more than three years  after  the  date  of
 issuance.  In  the  counties  of  Nassau,  Suffolk  and Westchester, any
 license to carry or possess a pistol or revolver,  issued  at  any  time
 pursuant  to  this  section  or prior to the first day of July, nineteen
 hundred sixty-three and not limited to expire on an earlier  date  fixed
 in  the license, shall expire not more than five years after the date of
 issuance; however, in the county of Westchester, any such license  shall
 be  certified  prior to the first day of April, two thousand, in accord-
 ance with a schedule to be contained in regulations promulgated  by  the
 commissioner  of  the  division  of criminal justice services, and every
 such license shall, except as otherwise provided  in  paragraph  (d)  of
 this  subdivision,  be  recertified  every  five  years  thereafter. For
 purposes of this section certification  shall  mean  that  the  licensee
 shall  provide  to the [licensing] FILING officer the following informa-
 tion only:  current name, date of birth, current address, and the  make,
 model,  caliber  and  serial number of all firearms currently possessed.
 Such certification information shall be filed by the [licensing]  FILING
 officer  in  the same manner as an amendment. Elsewhere than in the city
 of New York and the counties of Nassau,  Suffolk  and  Westchester,  any
 license  to  carry  or  possess a pistol or revolver, issued at any time
 pursuant to this section or prior to the first  day  of  July,  nineteen
 hundred sixty-three and not previously revoked or cancelled, shall be in
 force  and  effect  until  revoked  as  herein provided. Any license not
 previously cancelled or revoked shall remain in full  force  and  effect
 for  thirty  days beyond the stated expiration date on such license. Any
 application to renew a license that has  not  previously  expired,  been
 revoked  or cancelled shall thereby extend the term of the license until
 disposition of the application by the [licensing] FILING officer. In the
 case of a license for gunsmith or dealer in firearms, in counties having
 a population of less than two hundred thousand inhabitants,  photographs
 and  fingerprints  shall  be submitted on original applications and upon
 renewal thereafter at three year intervals. Upon satisfactory proof that
 a currently valid original license has been despoiled, lost or otherwise
 removed from  the  possession  of  the  licensee  and  upon  application
 containing  an  additional  photograph  of the licensee, the [licensing]
 FILING officer shall issue a duplicate license.
   (b) All licensees shall be recertified to the division of state police
 every five years thereafter, except as otherwise provided  in  paragraph
 (d) of this subdivision. Any license issued before the effective date of
 the  chapter of the laws of two thousand thirteen which added this para-
 graph shall be recertified by the licensee on or before January  thirty-
 first,  two  thousand eighteen, and not less than one year prior to such
 date, the state police shall send a notice to all  license  holders  who
 A. 2166                             3
 
 have  not  recertified  by such time. Such recertification shall be in a
 form as approved by the superintendent  of  state  police,  which  shall
 request the license holder's name, date of birth, gender, race, residen-
 tial address, social security number, firearms possessed by such license
 holder,  email address at the option of the license holder and an affir-
 mation that such  license  holder  is  not  prohibited  from  possessing
 firearms.  The form may be in an electronic form if so designated by the
 superintendent of state police. Failure to  recertify  shall  act  as  a
 revocation  of  such license. If the New York state police discover as a
 result of the recertification process that a licensee failed to  provide
 a  change  of  address,  the New York state police shall not require the
 [licensing] FILING officer to revoke such license.
   (c) A license to purchase or take possession of a semiautomatic  rifle
 as  defined  in  subdivision two of this section shall be recertified to
 the applicable [licensing] FILING officer every five years following the
 issuance of such license. Failure to renew such a  license  shall  be  a
 violation  punishable by a fine not to exceed two hundred fifty dollars,
 and such failure to renew shall be considered by the [licensing]  FILING
 officer when reviewing future license applications by the license holder
 pursuant to this chapter.
   (d)  Licenses  issued  under  paragraph (f) of subdivision two of this
 section shall be recertified or renewed in the same form and  manner  as
 otherwise  required  by  this  subdivision,  provided however, that such
 licenses shall be recertified or renewed every three years following the
 issuance of such license. For licenses issued  prior  to  the  effective
 date  of  this paragraph that were issued more than three years prior to
 such date, or will expire in less than one year from such date shall  be
 recertified or renewed within one year of such date.
   13.  Expenses.  The  expense of providing a [licensing] FILING officer
 with blank applications, licenses and record books for carrying out  the
 provisions  of this section shall be a charge against the county, and in
 the city of New York against the city.
   14. Fees. In the city of New York and the counties of Nassau and West-
 chester, the  annual  license  fee  shall  be  twenty-five  dollars  for
 gunsmiths  and  fifty dollars for dealers in firearms. In such city, the
 city council and in the counties of Nassau and Westchester the  legisla-
 tive  body  of such county shall fix the fee to be charged for a license
 to carry or possess  a  pistol  or  revolver  or  to  purchase  or  take
 possession  of  a semiautomatic rifle and provide for the disposition of
 such fees. Elsewhere in the state, the [licensing] FILING officer  shall
 collect  and  pay  into the county treasury the following fees: for each
 license to carry or possess a pistol or revolver or to purchase or  take
 possession  of  a  semiautomatic  rifle, not less than three dollars nor
 more than ten dollars as may be determined by the  legislative  body  of
 the  county; for each amendment thereto, three dollars, and five dollars
 in the county of Suffolk; and for each license issued to a  gunsmith  or
 dealer  in  firearms, ten dollars. The fee for a duplicate license shall
 be five dollars. The fee for processing a license transfer between coun-
 ties shall be five dollars. The fee for processing a license or  renewal
 thereof for a qualified retired police officer as defined under subdivi-
 sion  thirty-four  of  section  1.20 of the criminal procedure law, or a
 qualified retired sheriff, undersheriff, or deputy sheriff of  the  city
 of  New  York  as  defined  under subdivision two of section 2.10 of the
 criminal procedure law, or a qualified retired bridge and  tunnel  offi-
 cer, sergeant or lieutenant of the triborough bridge and tunnel authori-
 ty  as  defined under subdivision twenty of section 2.10 of the criminal
 A. 2166                             4
 
 procedure law, or a qualified retired uniformed  court  officer  in  the
 unified  court system, or a qualified retired court clerk in the unified
 court system in the first and second judicial departments, as defined in
 paragraphs  a  and  b  of  subdivision twenty-one of section 2.10 of the
 criminal procedure law or a retired correction  officer  as  defined  in
 subdivision  twenty-five  of  section 2.10 of the criminal procedure law
 shall be waived in all counties throughout the state.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.