The new firearm-purchase background checks and transfer restrictions created by voters’ approval of Initiative 594 are likely to take effect Dec. 4, but no one yet knows how the law will actually work, according to law enforcement officials.
As of the most recent count Wednesday, the statewide vote to approve the measure was 1,171,879 votes, or 59.12 percent, and 810,346 votes, or 40.88 percent, against the measure.
Since the passage of I-594 became apparent after the Nov. 4 election, the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office has received numerous phone calls with requests for information regarding how the new law will be applied.
Undersheriff Ron Peregrin asked that people stop calling the office because it has no answers yet.
“First, we will send it up to our civil attorney to determine what our role will be,” Peregrin said.
Peregrin said the Sheriff’s Office will be asking the county’s attorney to examine the law, inform the department what must be done and how to do it.
“This is pretty all-encompassing,” he said.
Jefferson County
Jefferson County Acting Sheriff Joe Nole said his department has not received any calls regarding I-594.
“I don’t expect to have to hire additional staff, and we will deal with the background checks as they come in,” he said.
“If this creates an unacceptable backlog, we will consider possible options for dealing with that,” Nole added.
Nole said he is uncertain what the impact will be, but the department will do everything possible to make the implementation of I-594 as efficient and painless as possible.
Initiatives and referendums voted into law become effective 30 days after their respective election unless there is a section in the initiative that sets an effective date.
I-594 will take effect Dec. 4 after state Secretary of State Kim Wyman certifies the election, said David Ammons, spokesman for Wyman.
Wyman is scheduled to certify the election Dec. 2, and I-594 will become law two days later, Ammons said.
Procedure undecided
Peregrin said the department has no idea yet what it will need to do to be ready for Dec. 4.
The sheriff’s offices are one of a very few places where people can have background checks done for firearm sales, though currently it is only done for federally licensed gun dealers.
The demand for firearm transfer background checks may overwhelm the county’s resources, Peregrin said.
“We only have two employees at the desk,” he said, adding that those two employees also handle all other civil matters.
Since the new law will require background checks for short-term loans of weapons, it could create a backlog and a long wait for the completion of transfers, Peregrin said.
“We may need to hire extra staff,” he said.
There is also some question as to the procedure for sales or loans of firearms owned by people who purchased them legally from gun shows or private sales in the past and were not required to register those purchases, he said.
Another question Peregrin had is whether a separate background check is needed for each firearm even when one person purchases or borrows multiple firearms at one time.
Multiple checks
He said that with the law written the way it is, it appears separate checks for a bulk sale will be required.
Peregrin said he believes there will be a series of lawsuits after implementation that will create clearer guidelines for enforcement of the new law, but until then, the Sheriff’s Office will work according to the advice it gets from the county’s civil attorney.
He said one of the concerns is instructional use of firearms at gun ranges, where it may be illegal for an instructor to allow his or her student to use a firearm not owned by the gun range or student.
Gifts to “immediate family members” are exempt from the background check, according to the initiative.
“Immediate family members” is defined in the initiative as spouses, domestic partners, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, first cousins, aunts and uncles.
Other exemptions include transfer of antique firearms, transfer to federally licensed gunsmiths for repair, emergency transfers for the safety of a threatened person, short-term loans at firearm competitions, loans between spouses or to minor children with adult supervision and while hunting with the presence of the licensed owner.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.