The California Senate has passed a bill that mandates guns to be securely stored in a safe or lock box approved by the California Department of Justice. The bill is set to be reviewed by the California Assembly Public Safety Committee on June 11.
State Senator Anthony Portantino, D-Burbank, has authored SB 53, which will come into effect on July 1, 2025. The bill aims to strengthen California’s existing gun violence prevention regulations by imposing specific standards for secure firearm storage for all gun owners. Its purpose is to ensure that responsible and safe firearm storage practices are followed, ultimately saving lives.
Violators of the bill will face penalties including a fine of up to $500 for the first offense. For the second and any subsequent offenses, misdemeanor charges will be filed and a one-year ban on firearm possession and purchase will be imposed. If caught violating the one-year ban, the offender could face either a misdemeanor or a felony charge.
In California, firearms are required to be either in a secure, locked container or equipped with a trigger lock if they are not being carried by an individual. This is in accordance with the current laws in the state.
California boasts some of the most rigorous firearm regulations in the country, which involve limiting gun magazines to 10 bullets and prohibiting the use of external features like foregrips and folding stocks under the “assault weapons” ban. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the United States is expected to pass a judgment on the state’s prohibition on standard-capacity magazines in the upcoming months, while a verdict on the “assault weapons” ban is probable to follow suit.
According to a report by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on school shootings in 2019, the bill highlights that 76% of attackers who used firearms to commit violence in schools obtained them from their parents’ or a close relative’s home. The report also revealed that in 50% of these cases, the firearms were either easily accessible or not secured in a significant manner.
Those against SB 53 argue that it could potentially violate the Constitution based on the ruling in Heller v DC. In the case, the Supreme Court stated that “the requirement that any lawful firearm in the home be disassembled or bound by a trigger lock makes it impossible for citizens to use arms for the core lawful purpose of self-defense and is hence unconstitutional.”
If SB 53 is approved, gun owners will be required to store their firearms in a CA DOJ-approved safe. The safe must meet specific requirements, including having at least 10,000 possible combinations, being made of drill-hardened steel or an equivalent material, and having three steel locking bolts that are at least half an inch thick. For a standard Model 1911 pistol, which has been in use since World War I, only three safes have been approved: The Anker T7400 and T7401, and the Shot Lock Handgun Solo-Vault 200M. While the T7400 is no longer widely available online, it has been replaced by the T7401, which costs $99.99. The Handgun Solo-Vault 200, on the other hand, costs $189.
This year, several states including Rhode Island and Minnesota have either passed or are in the process of advancing similar laws regarding the storage of firearms.