Earlier in 2013, Tennessee passed a few new gun laws—the “Guns in Trunks” law and another that regulates public access to information about registered gun owners. Tennessee’s governor, Bill Haslam, revealed to reporters recently that he prefers keeping discussions about Tennessee gun law changes out of the next legislation session. This does not necessarily mean that gun bills will be removed from consideration, but that Haslam is personally content with the current state of Tennessee firearms law.

As far as the legislation that has already passed this year, the Guns in Trunks law will take effect on July 1, 2013. On this date and thereafter, employees will be legally permitted to store firearms in their locked vehicles while parked at their place of employment. The law does not permit the employee to carry the firearm on their person in their workplace. Developing concerns over the new law surround an employer’s legal right to fire an employee if the worker violates company policy that states firearms are not allowed on premises. Employees are protected under the new law if there is no evidence that the firearm is present and locked in their vehicle. However, if the employer sees the weapon in the vehicle or if the gun is caught on camera, the gun owner’s employment may be terminated. Regardless of the possession of a weapon, Tennessee is an employment-at-will state, and employers can terminate workers at any time without having to provide a reason.

Pending gun law proposals in Tennessee may address changes in background checks for gun purchases, nullification of federal gun law changes, and a few other items to be announced. Currently there is no waiting period for gun purchases and licenses and permits are not required to purchase guns.
 

It’s an important time for Tennessee gun owners to consider “storing” their firearms in a gun trust. According to USA Today, there are almost a half million gun owners in Tennessee. How individuals choose to own their firearms affects the liability of the gun owner and their heirs. Learn more about Tennessee gun trusts and the benefits of using one to purchase and store your weapons. 
 

When zoning issues prevent land or structures to be used for purposes other than what they are zoned for, property owners can apply for a special-use permit in order to be granted authority for conditional use. For example, special-use permits allow individuals to sell guns from their homes in North Carolina, regardless if their city, town, or municipality explicitly forbids it.
 

North Carolina state law allows residential sales of firearms.  According to local news reports, this state law supersedes laws in jurisdictions on lower local levels. Special-use permits allow this exception. North Carolina special-use permit applications are reviewed on an individual basis and only granted when a board of adjustment approves the applicant based on certain general standards. Some of these standards relate to the preservation of safety and public health. In order to continue to use the permit, the permit holder needs to satisfy an additional set of regulations. These regulations are enforced upon approximately 1,400 North Carolinians who hold special-use permits; not all are used for residential gun sales. Some of these regulations may impose limits on traffic, the number of annual transactions, and other business functions.
 

An application for a special-use permit in Raleigh was recently approved. The applicant, a man residing near Cameron Village, will use the permit for selling firearms from his home. Anyone who operates as a gun dealer must meet federal regulations, which mandates conformity to state regulations. Operating as a gun dealer in North Carolina, and in any state, requires the individual to be subject to and pass inspections by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives.
 

If you sell guns in North Carolina as a firearms dealer or if you are interested in starting a firearms business, ask gun buyers if they have or would like to establish a gun trust. Read about the benefits of a gun trust here and contact our North Carolina gun trust attorneys to learn more.

 

In mid-May 2013, the North Carolina ‘Save the Gun’ bill (or more formally the “Disposal of Abandoned Firearms” House Bill 714) was passed. If the bill passes into law it will change law enforcement officials’ limitations for disposing firearms.

North Carolina’s Save the Gun bill would remove officers’ authority to destroy operable firearms, regardless of whether or not the firearms were used in a criminal act. What firearms fall under the proposed legislation? Weapons must meet the criteria below:

The bill sets forth new permissions for the use of firearms that are obtained by law enforcement officials. Instead of destroying firearms, officials would be permitted to:

If passed into law, the Save the Guns bill would pose concerns about what defines “fully-operable” and how this will be determined for each gun. Firearms that are acquired through North Carolina gun buyback programs, confiscated from criminals, or that are surrendered to officials would fall under the new regulations if they meet the firearm criteria above.

The new weapon disposal regulations will take effect on July 1, 2013 if lawmakers continue to pass the measure.

 

After many rounds of prototypes, the design files for the world’s first 3D printable handgun were made available online. The 3D printable gun design, The Liberator, was downloaded over 100,000 times in less than 48 hours. Internet users in the United States were among the majority of people downloading the designs, however Brazil recorded more downloads than any other country.
 

In the short time the files have been made public, the United States government issued an order for the 3D printable gun design to be removed from the Internet. However, the files have already been made available on multiple file sharing sites that are challenging, if not impossible, for law enforcement officials to moderate effectively.
 

The request to take down the weapon files has been made before proposed gun laws addressing 3D printed guns have been passed into law. In some states, requests for immediate law changes were made. For now, it is currently legal for US citizens to make their own firearms; a 3D printer and gun design files would be another means for individuals to create guns. 
 

A few problems with 3D printed guns are that they are untrackable and they don’t show up in metal detector security systems. During the first week the designs were available, reporters allegedly smuggled a 3D printed handgun across international borders. According to reports from Forbes, the reporters did not travel with the gun completely assembled, which has opened the argument that smuggling an unassembled weapon is not a full threat. However, it still poses possibilities to lawmakers to address as they prepare gun laws.

This is only the beginning of the Digital Age of gunmaking. The laws that develop in the coming months will likely need to be amended as technology continues to develop. State and federal gun lawmakers will take time to react to these changes. Responsible gun owners should keep an eye on gun law changes on their state level to make sure they are in compliance. For updates on Florida, Tennessee and North Carolina gun law changes, follow Southern Gun Law Group on Twitter and Facebook. 
 

A dozen changes to North Carolina gun laws have been proposed in 2013. About the same number of proposals were made in Florida, but only one bill affecting Florida gun law passed through the Legislature.
 

House Bill 1355 (Purchase of Firearms by Mentally Ill Persons) sets out to change eligibility for gun ownership in Florida based on mental competence. Current laws state any person who voluntarily enters a mental institution is legally permitted to purchase a firearm when they are released from the institution. Involuntarily admitted patients are not allowed to buy a gun under existing law once they leave a mental institution. The bill would change the law and make it so that anyone admitted to a mental institution, regardless of the voluntary or involuntary nature of their admission, would not be allowed to buy a gun after their release--if they were also involuntarily examined under the Baker Act. If they already had an active permit for carrying a firearm, that permit would automatically be suspended or revoked, pending a judge’s decision.

The Baker Act was passed in 1971 and makes it possible for doctors and mental health professionals, law officials, and judges in Florida to request an involuntary mental examination of an individual based on evidence of mental illness or if they may cause harm to themselves or others.

House Bill 1355 will take effect July 1, 2013 if it is passed into law. As part of the proposed law, the individual’s admission agreement, record of the finding, certification, notice, and written acknowledgement must be submitted within 24 hours of an involuntary examination to the clerk of the county court in the same county where the exam was made.

In early May, thousands of people contacted Florida’s governor asking for House Bill 1355 to be vetoed. Although there are no bills yet, other proposed gun law changes in Florida include creating an anger management class requirement and making licensed gun dealers the exclusive sellers of firearms in the state, taking away the ability to purchase firearms at gun shows. 

If you’re concerned about how proposed gun law changes may affect your Florida gun trust, contact the lawyers at Southern Gun Law Group. You can learn how these laws apply to you as a responsible gun owner, authorized users you have appointed, as well as the firearms included in your gun trust.

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